Blackbird
by WingsOfMorphius
Summary: Raven 'volunteered' to go Undercover at Casper High to find out more about the elusive Phantom! Between fighting paranormal beings, declaring war on cheerleaders and even befriending the klutzy yet mysterious Danny Fenton, that is. -Discontinued-
1. Undercover Assignment

**WoM- _Whoo hoo! New story! Just got my belly button pierced today, too. Didn't really hurt to get it done, but it still stings like hell, and I'm NOT looking forward to washing it. 'shutters,' Me no own Danny Phantom or Teen Titans. That said, enjoy!_**

****

* * *

****

"_Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."_

_**-Plato**_

****

* * *

****

_Skulker growled and scanned the area suspiciously. There were no floating doors here, just eternal darkness and a chill even ghosts could feel to their bones. The airs was sparse there, and there was an ever constant awareness of eyes on the back of his neck, no matter which way he turned…_

_This was a part of Ghost Zone even the most brave and foolish avoided, and he was not there willingly. Vlad had heard some rumor he wanted Skulker to look into and the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter had a habit of listening to his boss, if only because he had all the best tools and technology for weapons Skulker could use._

_Still, he had to reconsider things now that he was actually here. Maybe he could look for another person to fund him…_

"**Going somewhere?"**

_Skulker turned too late, and screamed loudly as he was engulfed in jet-black light, disappearing without a trace. A voice chuckled softly as Skulker's memories played before it's shadow-shrouded owner on a crystal ball. _

_The images slowed upon getting to a young ghost with silvery white hair and vivid green eyes. The ghost watched closely as this boy defeated all ghost who came up before him, including Pariah Dark. Watching the boy transform from a ghost to a human in two beams of white light the figure grinned, showing flashing white teeth._

"**Interesting…."**

"Checkmate," Raven said calmly, moving her piece to capture Cyborg's king.

"Aw, man!" Cyborg groaned, slumping back into his chair. Robin laughed and patted his larger friend's shoulder.

"Better luck next time, Cyborg," he said, sympathetically.

Raven smiled in amusement as she packed the chessboard away telepathically. Beastboy stumbled into the room, apparently just waking up though it was already near noon. Robin and Cyborg argued lightly over some trivial matter and Starfire was humming happily in the kitchen, making yet another of her exotic Tameranian dishes she was explicitly forbidden from serving to others.

It was a slow day so far, all the villains were in jail (Save the ever illusive Slade and the Brotherhood of Evil) and no new ones had popped up yet, so a semi-balance of peace had descended upon Jump City, and the Titan Tower specifically.

'Knock, knock, knock!' All activity stopped momentarily as all the Titans shared confused looks.

"Was that the door?" Cyborg asked, scratching his head.

Attacks, Explosions, basic chaos and destruction, that was norm for the Titans. However, something as normal as a visitor who took the time to knock was something of a rarity. As such, Raven cast a suspicious look in Beastboy's direction.

"This wouldn't be another one of your Beastboy's Super Extravagant Titan Tower Tours, would it?" She asked suspiciously as Starfire flew to answer the door.

"Huh? No!" The green teen said quickly, holding his hand in front of him in a defensive gesture. "After the way you guys came down on me after the last one, I decided to call it quits,"

"Excuse me," An unfamiliar female voice cut in, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything…"

"Of course not." Robin said to the visitor, a middle aged Asian woman in a suit. "Come in Mrs.…?"

"Ishiyama," She supplied, "Principal Ishiyama, of Casper High in Amity Park," Raven raised an eyebrow at her introduction, mild surprise written on her face, but everyone else just looked more confused.

"Well, Principal Ishiyama," Robin said, crossing his armed, "Is there any reason you decided to pay us a visit,"

"Yes, actually," Ishiyama said in a clipped, no nonsense voice, "It's a rather long, complicated story, but to be brief I came here on behalf of Amity Park, to beseech the help of young Raven," a moment of silence passed, then Cyborg broke it with a yell.

**_"…WHAAAAAAAAT?"_**

****

_**

* * *

**_

BLACKBIRD Chapter 1; Undercover Assignment

_**

* * *

**_

"Raven?" Beastboy repeated, incredulously "_RAVEN,_ Raven?"

"Yes, that's right," Ishiyama confirmed, looking at the girl, "You're something of an expertise on the Paranormal World, am I right?"

"Paranormal?" Robin repeated, "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Because Amity Park is an epicenter for Ghost Activity," Raven informed then gravely, "There's a portal there from the Ghost Zone into the Mortal Realm, a powerful one at that. I've heard of some of your more severe attacks," This last comment was directed to Ishiyama, who didn't look surprised, "Like the one instigated by Pariah Dark, but I didn't hear anything that suggested the attacks were getting too much for your local hunters to handle."

"The Fentons have the gratitude of the entire community for protecting us during the ghost raids," Ishiyama said, "And even the mysterious vigilante Hunter Girl is in our debt, but recently there's been a rapid increase of ghost activity that seems too much for any of them to handle. Besides, I'm sure you've heard of the infamous Phantom?"

"A few times," Raven said with a wry smile. You didn't hear someone mention Amity Park or even Ghost in general now a days without the name Phantom popping up.

Raven remembered how there'd been a rather heated argument in one of her favorite cafés about whether he was a hero or menace, with several people getting involved. Raven had been called upon for a comment, but wisely said nothing other then the fact that she'd never met Phantom and didn't trust secondhand information.

"The people of Amity Park are torn about his status in our community," Ishiyama sighed, "Especially since we have no idea where he came from or why he's here," Ishiyama shook her head, "In fact, all we do know about him for sure is his name, and that wasn't until after he told us!"

"And…"

"And we want you to come to Amity Park to help control our current situation and try to find out a little more about our own little Ghost Child,"

"And how's Raven gonna help with that?" Beastboy demanded.

"She has a natural ability to fight ghosts with, instead of weapons," Ishiyama sighed, "Our faith in Ghost Hunting Technology has wavered of late, with Jack Fenton waving around ecto-guns like toys,"

"And gathering information?" Robin asked.

"She is a teenager," Ishiyama shrugged, "The teenaged community of Amity Park is the one that has the most contact with ghosts, especially in Casper High." Ishiyama sighed here, "We're attacked by a different ghost nearly every day now… Anyways, they don't tell adults too much when they've been attacked, especially those who have had multiple encounters with Phantom, like Paulina Sanchez or Tucker Foley. We were hoping Raven could go undercover and pretend to be a high school student long enough to learn more about Phantom."

"…You want me to _what_?" Raven asked, her eyes narrowing dangerously. Ishiyama, though, was a principal of a high school, and forced to work with uncooperative kids on a daily basis. Raven's look didn't phase her and she continued on calmly.

"We merely wish to eliminate him as a threat and unite the community in this time of hardship. I understand it may seem a little unreasonable to you, but I don't doubt attending Casper High will be a challenging and fresh learning experience for you,"

"Why is only friend Raven asked to attend?" Starfire asked, confused.

"We need the information gathering part of this operation to remain covert," Ishiyama told her, "And we felt Raven would stand out less then the other members of your team,"

"We're talking about Raven here, right?" Beastboy asked doubtfully. The half demon sent him a scathing glare.

"You'd be surprised how Teenaged girls are dressing today," Ishiyama say wry. "Why just yesterday Miss Sanchez-!" Realizing she was getting off topic, Ishiyama cleared her throat, "Yes, well, a change of clothes and perhaps a wig or something of the sort will be in order so no one will recognize her as a Titan, but she is allowed to pick out those clothes on her own. Amity Park will cover the funds, along with books, book bag, housing and anything else you need for the trip."

Raven went even paler when Starfire's eyes glowed at that, obviously sensing she'd get a chance to both shop and finally use Raven as a living Barbie doll, something she'd been aching to do for a good long time now since Robin had decreed she owned enough clothes.

"Oh, yes, yes, YES!" Starfire said excitedly, "Friend Raven would be most happy to attend this Casper High!"

"Uhh…" Raven started, raising a hand to object. It turned into a yelp of surprise when said hand was suddenly grasped in an alien strength grip, with Starfire flying to the door, vigorously listing all the stores she wanted to take Raven to as the boys spared her pitying looks but made no move to free her. They knew better then to try and stop Starfire when she was in 'Shop Mode'

_**

* * *

**_

"Yo, Danny! You get the assignment done in Lancer's class? I was busy last night…" Danny grinned and pulled the paper out of his backpack.

"Yeah. Jazz had to help me, but I got it." Valerie laughed.

"Lucky. I wish I had an older sis to bail me out every now and then…"

"Too bad the entire time she was helping me, she also lectured me on keeping up with my homework," Danny said dryly.

"Can't be as bad as my dad!" Valerie insisted, wrinkling her nose.

"Still grounded?" Danny said, wincing slightly. "How much longer till your dad lets you rejoin civilization?"

"Depends," Valerie said, "Know when the next Ice Age is gonna start?"

"Ouch," Danny said feeling guilty.

"Mmhm…" Valerie responded, not noticing Danny's guilt in her seething anger as she fantasized about the ways she'd torture the ghost kid before blasting his head into the next century. "Well, at least he doesn't have a problem with me going on that trip with your family this Friday,"

"I still don't get why you want to go," Danny shook his head, "Three days of camping out with a bunch of ghost hunters in the middle of no where?"

"I can think of worst ways to spend my time," Valerie responded with a shrug. "Anyways, are you gonna give the other invite to Tucker or what?"

"He's not coming," Danny said absently, "Made plans with Melissa, apparently."

"Who?"

"New girlfriend. She's in his Sewing class." Valerie stopped dead.

"…Tucker takes sewing?" Danny grinned.

"He's passing with flying colors, too." Danny chuckled. "Anyways, He kinda bailed on her last night to help me catch a-" Danny froze, causing Valerie to raise an eyebrow at him. "-A, um, a Raccoon that broke into our garage and took one of my dad's lame old experiments, the Ghost Gabber!"

"Well, then I guess it's just the two of us!" Valerie said. Then, realizing what that sounded like, she added hastily, "And your family, of course! By the way, isn't your sister inviting anyone?"

"Nah," Danny said, "It was supposed to be that both of us could invite one friend, but she doesn't want her friends to be anywhere close to my parents when they're around all this ghost hunting stuff."

"Well, I'd better get going before the bell." Valerie said, shrugging her backpack up. "See you at lunch, Danny!"

"See ya, Val," Danny responded, heading off to his own class.

He and Valerie had become much closer lately. Sam had apparently gotten into a big fight with her parents one night, who'd mistaken all the late night ghost hunts for something much less wholesome. Refusing to give their daughter the benefit of the doubt, Mr. And Mrs. Manson decided to send her to a private school district.

A _catholic year-round all-girls_ private high school district…

…In **_France_**…

…With **_UNIFORMS_**.

To say Sam Manson was not pleased with this abrupt attack on her unique personality and individuality (Her exact words, according to Grandma Manson,) would be like saying Jack Fenton was only mildly interested in ghosts. She's more or less trashed every room in the mansion fighting off her parents and the four thugs they'd hired to make sure she 'got on the plane safely' (IE didn't run away) and even managed to send one of the thugs to the hospital. (All that ghost fighting had really improved her ability to defend herself.)

Still, in the end she was sent, unwillingly, to Saint Marguerite's Finishing School for Privileged Young Women. There she was technically not allowed any contact with the outside world, save her parents. Still, she managed to slip a letter past the nuns and to Danny and Tucker every now and then, telling them she was indeed alive. Unhappy, but alive nonetheless.

_'Then Tuck went and decided to get into the dating scene…'_ Danny thought dryly.

Then he sighed. That wasn't very fair to his talkative best friend, though. After all, he still helped Danny out as much as he could, even with his girlfriend around. And he kept Danny's secret from Melissa, for which Danny was eternally grateful.

Not that he thought Melissa Aldermen was untrustworthy. She was always just the shy, quiet girl who sat in the back, looking like she wanted to disappear off the face of the earth every time someone glanced her way. One of those 'invisibles' of society no one paid too much attention to.

It was just the fact that he didn't know Melissa that made him nervous. Danny could count on one hand how many times Melissa had spoken directly to his face, and every time was at Tucker's urging. Tucker had told him once that Melissa was just uncomfortable around him, though she wouldn't tell him why.

Her discomfort made Danny uncomfortable, and since Melissa didn't seem to have any friends of her own, Tucker usually stuck around with her as much as possible. Danny knew Tucker well enough to know that he wouldn't want him hanging around with them if it mean that every one would just sit in an awkward silence for the entire time. With that in mind, Danny had taken to eating lunch with Valerie.

Not that Tucker had abandoned him, he still spent as much time as possible hunting ghosts with Danny, under the guise of studying if Melissa questioned him about it. Still, a lot of his conversations with Danny during this time still came back to Melissa in some way, shape or form.

Danny was admittedly a little bitter about the whole thing, which was in some ways worse then Sam's move (At least she made it clear she didn't _want_ to leave,) but he never let Tucker know it. His friends had devoted enough time to helping Danny with his problems, they deserved a little happiness all their own.

And to top it all off, ghost had been attacking more frequently lately, becoming more and more frantic fighting him, determined not to go back to the Ghost Zone. This wasn't a good sign to the young halfa, as last time ghosts were near this desperate to get away from their home, he ended up fighting the Evil King of the Undead, Pariah Dark.

Danny sighed as he ran a hand absently through his hair, taking his seat for Math. At least now he could honestly say there was no possible way for anything to get worse…

"Okay, kids, Pop Quiz!"

_'…Why do I even bother?'_

_**

* * *

**_

"Oh, come on!" Beastboy growled, "How long can it take to change your shirt, Rae?"

"Do you want to wake up one day and find yourself in an alternate dimension were you're the only vegetarian among giant man-eating monsters, Beastboy?" an irritated voice responded. Beastboy turned green(-er) and immediately went quiet.

On the other side of her door, Raven scowled into a mirror. Today had not been the most 'fun' in any sense of the word. First of all it took Raven a good three hours to convince Starfire she absolutely would not wear anything pastel and/or glittery. Ditto for anything with a cute and fuzzy critter on the front, along with any style and length of skirts.

Determined to get the girl into something both of them could agree on, Starfire bravely brought Raven to Hot Topic, gaining the attention of the entire store by pointing things out non stop and questioning the philosophy behind the all mighty Happy Bunny.

And after they'd finally gotten clothes and even make-up (That's right, Make-up.) out of the way, then came the wigs.

Once again, Raven found herself explaining to Starfire exactly why pink wasn't her best color, and after she felt herself beginning to lose her voice, She decided to narrow Star's choices a little but saying the wig absolutely had to be black.

Fat load of good that did. Short hair, long hair, curly, straight, braided, dreadlocks, you name it, Raven tried it on. And, with that out of the way, a tired and very cranky Raven finally made her way back home, only to have the boys hound her to see the disguise before she took off in the morning for her mission.

Which had led up to this…

"Done," Raven called out, sighing slightly. And, with a horrible feeling sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Raven left her safe haven and faced the boys and Star, who was eager to see how the ensemble came together.

Silence.

"Whoa…" Beastboy blinked "Raven, you look…"

"Wonderful!" Starfire gushed, apparently quite proud of herself.

Raven was wearing a dark blue halter-top with thin black pinstripes and black lace crisscrossing in the front. It zipped up in the back with a black zipper, and had heavy black lace hemming. Underneath that, though, was a fishnet shirt that had finger holes for her hands, and ended off the shoulders just barely above Raven's cleavage.

A black velvet choker with a silver bird was clasped around her throat, and black bracelets around both wrists, the right one studded and the left with little spikes. She wore black (And unbelievably tight) pants, with a studded belt. Beneath the flare of her pants, dark purple combat boots with black soles peeked out.

Though she had little (as in none whatsoever) experience with make up, Raven's expertise with drawing out spells in sand and chalk came in handy for something else for once. Her nails were painted the darkest shade of black imaginable, and her lips were a deep shade of blue. She didn't bother with contacts, since she was already uncomfortable enough, but she did use eyeliner and purple eye shadow.

The thing that really completed the transformation, though, was the black wig Raven wore. The hair was wavy, going to mid back, and Raven had managed to make it look like her natural hair.

"Man, you really do look like a kid in high school," Beastboy said, sounding confused.

"No one's gonna confuse you for you, that's for sure," Cyborg agreed. "Can't that bracelet be considered a weapon?"

"They'll have to deal with it," Raven scowled, "I might need it to beat my head in, after all."

"Oh, come on, Raven!" Robin smiled, "I doubt High School will be that bad. Maybe you'll even grow to like it. After all, you liked watching those kids, didn't you?"

"Doesn't mean I've forgiven you for not telling me what I was dealing with," Raven said, glaring at the team leader. Robin flinched slightly. "Well, I guess if worse comes to worst, I'll tell her I couldn't find anything and come home,"

"Who knows, maybe you'll make some new friends," Beastboy said optimistically. Raven gave him a dry look.

"I doubt that…" she said dryly, going back to her room to get some sleep for the big move tomorrow.

_'I'm gonna regret this, I just know it…'_ Raven thought dryly.

* * *

**WoM- _That's all for now! Please review, then tune in next week to watch Raven's first day of school As Rachel Venn, which involves bullies, brats, bad food and an overwhelming amount of homework. Ta!_**

****

**_

* * *

_**

**Next update**_**-** November 26th_


	2. Rachel Venn

**WoM- **_'grins'** You know, I'm really starting to feel spoiled, you guys! Not that I mind, who doesn't want to be spoiled rotten after all… **'laugh'** anywho, keep 'em coming, and I'll keep updating!**_

_**

* * *

**_

"_He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches."_

_**-George Bernard Shaw**_

_**

* * *

**_

_"Has Skulker returned from his mission yet?" Vlad Masters demanded of the three birds before him, swirling the red wine he wasn't in the mood to drink._

_"Nope," One of them said, "Notta trace, boss. Maybe they got him too…" Vlad sighed angrily._

_"Maybe…" He repeated in a calm, even tone. "…As in you aren't sure?"_

_"Well…"_

_"Do you even know if they exist?" Vlad hissed, narrowing his eyes._

_"Ehehehe… Funny story there, boss…" The birds scattered, yelping, when the wine glass flew at them. It hit the wall, shattering on impact._

_"Fools!" Vlad roared, Glaring at the birds as they flew around in confusion, "Get out! OUT! And don't come back until you bring me something useful!" _

_The birds all phased out of the room, leaving nothing to show they were there except the mess of scattered feathers they'd lost in their panic. Vlad sighed as he sunk into his chair, massaging his forehead to fight off his growing migraine. After deeming the battle a lost cause, he flipped on the switch to contact his secretary, a pretty young woman who died in '63._

_"Gloria, bring me a glass of cold water and an Aspirin," He ordered into the small box on the corner of his desk. As an afterthought, he added, "And send someone from cleaning up with an ecto-vacuum, some stain remover and everything needed to clean up broken glass."_

_"Yes sir," the girl responded at once. Vlad sighed again after hitting the off switch, his eyes fixed on the growing red stain on his otherwise flawless white carpet…_

Raven sighed as she glanced over her disguise once again. It was as flawless as when she'd first put it on, maybe more so since she was rested today. (Other then the fact that she'd awaken an hour earlier then she was accustomed.) And yet she still felt like she felt like she was forgetting something important…

Dismissing the feeling, Raven swung a messenger bag over her shoulder (She refused to use a backpack, which was far too uncomfortable for her.) and headed out to the bus stop.

She wasn't the first one there. A dark girl with short, stringy brown hair and glasses was there too, clutching three books to her chest since her backpack was overstuffed already.

"This is the stop for Casper, right?" Raven asked her shortly. The girl nodded shyly, not meeting Raven's eyes. This was just fine with the sorceress, though, since she preferred silence to talking, even if it was an uncomfortable silence.

"Hey, who're you?" Raven frowned and turned, meeting the blue eyes of a pretty blonde girl she already didn't like. Apparently, the feeling was mutual, as the girl made a face upon getting a good look at Raven. "Oh, great. And here I thought our class would finally be goth-free with Manson in France," She said in disgust.

Raven was suddenly badly tempted to hex the girl who was now throwing her long blonde hair over her shoulder.

"Just don't try to talk to me, okay? You're nowhere near cool enough," Raven gritted her teeth, taking a deep breath when a nearby manhole cover began to rattle dangerously.

_'Calm down, Raven,'_ She told herself, _'You've dealt with bigger things then airheads who think they're better then others. Now then, breathe in and out. In and out…'_

"Uh, hello, you still haven't told me your name!" The girl pointed out snottily.

"I'm not cool enough to talk to you, remember?" Raven reminded the girl dryly. She felt satisfaction course through her as the girl blushed and glared.

"Loser," She muttered, looking away. Hiding a smirk, Raven turned to the other girl to find her wide eyes darting from her to the manhole and back again. Raven frowned.

_'She didn't see anything, did she?'_ Raven asked herself uncertainly. She was tempted to probe the girl's mind, but was also pretty sure that would constitute as invasion of privacy. She only used it in extreme cases, even on villains, and the girl hadn't done anything wrong yet…

Raven brushed her thoughts away as the bus pulled up to the stop, coming to a screeching halt before opening up the door. Despite the fact that she'd arrived last, the snotty blonde got on the bus first. Then went the quiet girl after one last shy glance at Raven and finally the Titan herself.

Raven faltered as soon as she was on the bus, though, when she saw there was absolutely no where to sit. Everywhere was three to a seat, and even four in some spots. Grimacing, Raven made her way to a seat that had an inch of space left where she might be able to sit, knocking into people as she went and even getting felt up once (Raven didn't catch who did it, or else they'd probably be in a coma considering her current mood.)

Finally, Raven sat down, already impatient for the day to be over.

_'If this day gets any worse, someone will be dead before lunch,'_ she thought grimly as the bus lurched forward, forcing her to grab onto the seat in front of her to avoid being thrown to the ground.

_**

* * *

**_

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 2; Rachel Venn _

_**

* * *

**_

"Great, now I'm tired, cranky _and_ my back is thrown," Raven said sarcastically, massaging her aching back, "Who gave that bus driver her license, anyways?" Sighing, she made her way up the steps into the high school, ignoring the way people pointed, stared and whispered behind their hands. She was way irritated to give a damn what they thought of her.

She entered the principal's office unceremoniously, ignoring the way the secretary tried to stop her. Ishiyama looked up from some papers when she came in and sighed at the look on her face.

"It's alright, Harriet," She called to her secretary, "she has an appointment to meet with me. Come in, Rachel, and please close the door behind you," Still scowling, Raven shut the door sharply.

"Your bus driver needs to be fired," She said firmly. "And ever consider a few more buses? Some of us kinda like to breath every once in a while."

"I'm afraid the school's budget won't allow it," Ishiyama said, "Sit down, Raven. And what on earth are those on your bracelet?"

"Spikes," Raven answered.

"You do realize Mrs. Testlaff won't allow you to wear those in gym," Ishiyama said with a slight frown, "And please don't argue with the teachers, Raven, I get enough students in here as it is. God knows Danny Fenton has a reserved seat in this office now…"

"Uh, Mrs. Ishiyama?" Raven said uncertainly. She resisted the urge to ask her to elaborate on that name, which sounded vaguely familiar.

"Oh, yes of course!" Ishiyama cleared her throat, "At any rate, Here's your schedule, locker and combination. I'm afraid I'm too busy trying to find funding to pay for the damage some ghosts did to the boys bathroom last Thursday, but I'm sure you'll find your fellow students more then willing to point you in the right direction,"

"Kinda doubt that…" Raven muttered dryly under her breath, thinking of the looks she'd received coming in.

"If that's all, I think you better get to class, Miss Venn," Ishiyama said, opening her door, "And please don't be afraid to drop in, my door's always open."

"I'll keep that in mind," Raven sighed, leaving. She scanned her scheduled for her homeroom class. "Which way to room 202?"

"Up the stairs at the end of this hall and to the right," Ishiyama answered, "Good luck!"

"Thanks," Raven said as she left the office, taking in all the stares she was getting. "I'll need it…"

She made her way up the stairs like Ishiyama had instructed her, looking at the room numbers to try and get some bearings for where she was. She was a little annoyed that not only would none of the other students offer to help her, but they all avoided her as much as possible in the crowded halls.

'What, do they think I have some kind of disease or something?' Raven thought dryly. It wasn't until a few minutes after the bell had rang and the hallways cleared that she finally found the room she was looking for and entered.

"Is this Mr. Folupa's class?" She asked the short, dumpy looking teacher.

"Yes," He said in a nasally voice, "Come in, you must be Miss Venn." He turned to the rest of the students, who were all staring at Raven and whispering to their neighbors. "Class, this is Rachel Venn from New York. She'll be joining us for the rest of the school year," 'don't count on it, pal.' "Rachel, do you want to tell us a little about yourself?"

"I'd like it better if you called me Rae," Raven responded. The reason she'd chosen this name for her cover was because it was similar to her own name, yet not enough that people wouldn't get suspicious. "Other then that, no,"

"What do your parents do?" Someone called out.

_'My dad's a giant bloodthirsty demon bend on destroying mankind and my mom was a sacrificial bride from a Satanist Cult.'_ She thought dryly.

"Dad's a lawyer and I have a stay at home mom," She said instead.

"Are you a witch?" A Latino girl of model proportions in front asked snottily. Raven noticed that her blonde 'friend' from the bus stop was on the girl's right.

"No," Raven answered _'Sorceress. Or half-demon, your pick.'_

"Why did your family move here?" One kid asked, "I mean wit the whole ghost infestation thing…"

"Because my dad's a money-hungry shark who thinks he can make a killing off of people suing each other over property damage," Raven snapped, starting to grow irritated. Turning to the teacher, she asked, "Can I sit down now?"

"Oh!" The teacher seemed startled, "Y-yes, of course," Rolling her eyes, Raven took a free seat in the far back next to a window, ignoring the teacher as he took attendance.

Now that she had a free moment, she thought of her teammates and how they'd respond to this situation. Beastboy would probably become the way uncool guy who never turned his homework in, fell asleep in class and was always cracking jokes and hitting on the pretty girls. Starfire would make it instantly as a popular girl with her good looks and cheery (If somewhat naïve) disposition.

Likewise Cyborg would probably be popular, with his giant build and love of sport combined with the fact that he knew what was expected of kids in high school. Robin would probably be far too uncomfortable to fit in, not to mention that some people may find his leader's attitude annoying after a while.

Thinking about her friends back in Jump City, Raven felt a twinge of homesickness. It was true that she didn't care what other people in this school thought of her, since they all seemed too superficial to waste a second thought on, but she was a little lonely.

After all, this meant she wouldn't hear anymore of Beastboy's bad jokes, or listen to him and Cyborg argue over breakfast rights in the morning. No more bubbly Starfire dragging them all to the mall so she could use the boys as impromptu pack mules (Literally in Beastboy's case.) no more sparring with Robin, no more Mega Movie Nights whenever villains were sparse…

"Has anyone seen Mr. Fenton?" Mr. Folupa called out in a loud, irritated tone, breaking Raven from her thoughts.

"His sister said he might be a little late this morning," One girl in the front said at once, in an almost defensive manner, "Apparently his dad had a new invention to show off and Danny didn't get away in time." Mr. Folupa shook his head and sighed.

"Thank you, Miss Grey," he said in a tired tone, "I'll just go ahead and mark him absent," a lot of kids giggled at that, including the blonde and her Latino friend.

Deciding that the conversation wasn't worth her attention, Raven turned back to the window, drowning the teacher out for the remainder of the class to plan for her first stake out tonight.

_**

* * *

**_

"When I-!" _'Crash!'_ "find out-!" _'Blam! Blam!'_ "-who's responsible-!" _'BOOM!'_ "-for all these loose ghosts-!" _'Bang!_' "I'm gonna- **_THAT'S A PLANE YOU MORON!_**" Danny shot upwards, punching the Cyclops ghost as hard as he could. The monster was caught off guard, and that combined with Danny's super strength was enough to send him crashing through the cement.

Danny grimaced as he watched the jet begin a downward trip straight to an office building. Screaming was heard from inside the plane, as Danny flew to catch up with it. Once he had a hold of a wing, he turned himself, the airplane and everything inside it intangible (Though it strained him to do so, with how large the jumbo jet was.) after they went through the office, Danny used his strength to steer the plane so it landed gently on the ground.

After it'd stopped, Danny sink to his knees, panting. There was a bit of a commotion of both sides of the jet and after he saw some people reaching for their ghost alarms (Maddie's idea) Danny decided it was time to get the hell out of there, exhausted or not. He wasn't in the mood to be that the opposite end of his parent's ecto-guns, not today, not ever.

Going invisible, Danny flew over to a nearby alley and hid behind some trashcans, turning human again. It was only then he realized that the Cyclops had escaped. After cursing vividly and trying to scout the area on foot with no result, Danny took off for school rather begrudgingly.

_"How's it going, Danny?"_ A familiar voice asked in his right ear.

"No good," Danny muttered back glumly, barely moving his lips so people wouldn't think he was crazy, "He got away."

Jazz had gotten tired of not being able to get a hold of her brother ¾ of the time she needed to, since it was difficult to fight off the undead forces of evil and chat on a cell phone at the same time. So as a result, Jazz made the Fenton Mini-Comms, two micro communicators disguised as earrings.

While Maddie and Jack hadn't been particularly pleased when Danny got his ear pierced without consulting them (Well, Maddie more then Jack.) no one else seemed to find his black earring suspicious. Nor did anyone notice that Phantom suddenly had the exact same piercing in the exact same spot. Jazz wore hers (blue) with a 'mate' that was just a normal earring.

Danny had to admit, the communicators made things a lot easier for him, since now Jazz could warn him about things and direct him to places he needed to be. Still, the fact that it also meant his sister now had a way to nag him 24/7 wasn't as welcoming.

_"Did he tell you anything?"_

"No. Didn't talk at all. I don't think he knew how…"

_"It didn't turn into a big scene again, did it?"_ Jazz asked worriedly. Danny figured she was probably in the girl'sbathroom, since she wasn't bothering to lower her voice.

"Define 'big scene,'" Danny said, watching six news vans speed past him. Jazz groaned.

_"Dan-ny…"_

"It wasn't my fault the idiot attacked a plane in midair, okay!" Danny said defensively.

_"I never said it was,"_ Jazz said in a more gentle voice, _"Any ghost hunters?"_

"Nah," Danny sighed, "I got out of there before they could pull the alarms. And before you ask no one got hurt."

_"What about you? Are you okay?"_

"Fine," Danny responded, more on instinct then anything else.

_"Danny!"_ Warning was clear in Jazz's tone.

"I swear, Jazz, this time I'm really fine," He promised her, "I may have over exerted myself a bit, but that ought to be gone by lunch." Jazz sighed.

_"Well, if you're sure you're okay…"_ She said in a hesitant sort of voice. Danny frowned as he heard a bell ring in the background.

"Was that the late bell for Homeroom?"

_"Uh, not exactly…"_ Jazz said. _"That was the release bell for Homeroom." _Danny's eyes widened and he groaned.

"Great. I missed homeroom again…" He grumbled. Then he paled, "Wait, that means I've got six minutes to get to Lancer's class!"

_"Where are you?"_ Jazz asked.

"By the Movie Theatre," Danny answered, going ghost again and taking off for the school at top speed. It wasn't as fast as he normally was, considering he'd been weakened from using his powers too much, but it was more then enough that he was speeding past even the fastest cars on the ground.

_"That means you're closest to the west side of the school,"_ Jazz said after a moment's calculation. (Danny still thought it was creepy that she actually took the time to know this, even if it was useful to him,) _"Change back in the boy's bathroom you and Skulker destroyed then head to Lancer's, that should be the fastest route."_

"That was Skulker's fault," Danny reminded her, "It wasn't my fault his new toy went berserk and blew a wall off." Then, he added an earnest, "Thanks Jazz,"

_"No problem, Little bro,"_ He could practically hear Jazz's grin, _"Gotta go! someone's coming, and I have to get to Advance Chemistry."_ Danny smiled to himself as Jazz turned her Fenton Mini-Comm off.

It hardened into a determined look, however, when the school came into view. He knew he was looking at another detention if he was late for Lancer, and was hell bound on going a week without getting into trouble, ghosts or no ghosts.

Besides, he really, really didn't want to have another chat with Mrs. Ishiyama.

With that thought powering him, Danny turned human again and shot out of the bathroom and down the hall, only to run straight into a brick wall.

"FENTON!"

…Okay, not a brick wall, but Dash Baxter was certainly built like one, and had just as many rocks in his head.

"You loser! I just had this letterman jacket cleaned!" Danny looked up to see what he was talking about and flinched when he saw Dash was now wearing his bottle of coke, and it was rabidly staining brown in his red and white football jacket.

"Sorry, Dash," He said, "I was in a hurry, and-!" Danny didn't get to finish as Dash grabbed him by the front of the shirt and slammed him into the lockers, preparing to hit the smaller boy.

"Oh, you'll be sorry alright!" He growled.

_**

* * *

**_

"You do realize Halloween isn't for another two months, don't you?" Raven scowled up at the same Latino who had asked her if she was a witch as she and the blonde stood over Raven's desk, smirking.

"Really?" Raven asked coolly, "Then what's with the Evil Queen act? Or do you prefer Empty Beauty?" The girl's eyes widened, and everyone around her stopped in their tracks.

"You- How dare you!" The Latino yelled, her cheeks going red in anger, "Who do you think you are?"

"I'm a new student who doesn't have time for your act," Raven responded.

"Hey, do you have any idea who you're talking to?" The blonde demanded.

"No, and I can't say I care," Raven said honestly.

"Why you-!"

"Hey," The Latino told the other girl suddenly, "Lay off, Star. Look, Rae, right?"

"Yeah?" Raven said, suspicious of the girl's kind tone.

"I'm sorry if I came off as rude. I really didn't mean it." She said with a smile that could give cavities. "I'm Paulina, Paulina Sanchez."

"Look, I-!"

"I mean it, _amiga_, I really am sorry," Paulina pouted. "As a way of making it up to you, let me point you in the direction of your next class,"

"It's fine, I can find it on my own," Raven said, still not trusting the girl.

"Oh, but everyone else is busy," As if on cue, all the other students (Save Star) hastily gathered their things and darted out the door. "Come on, _por favor_? I'd feel horrible if you didn't let me help you after such a terrible first impression…"

"Fine," Raven sighed, handing her the schedule. Benefit of the doubt, right? Besides, she was in a hurry.

"Mr. Lancer's English Class?" Paulina said, "That's on the west side of the second floor, between the girl's room and the Sewing Classroom,"

"Really?" Raven said, now both wary and confused, "Uh, thanks?"

"_De nada_," Paulina said with another model-like smile, "Bye, Rae! Come on, Star, let's go," Raven frowned at the blonde who was giving her friend a bewildered look. Something was still bothering her, but she couldn't put a finger on it. Dejectedly going against her better judgment, Raven followed Paulina's directions.

She was almost to the room Paulina had told her to enter when a loud crash was heard a little ways down the hall. Her attention diverted, Raven frowned upon seeing two boy's her age, one with messy black hair and blue eyes sprawled on the ground post-fall, and the other, blonde one clearly a jock, dripping in some overpriced carbonated soda Raven couldn't stand.

"FENTON!" the jock yelled, glaring at the boy on the ground. "You loser! I just had this letterman jacket cleaned!" Raven frowned at his rudeness over the accident, while at the same time puzzled. Fenton? As in Danny Fenton, the boy the Teachers kept mentioning was a troublemaker? He certainly didn't look the part.

He was slim, for one, and clean kept save his jet black hair with seemed to be stubbornly messy. True, his vivid blue eyes warranted some attention, but honestly that was the only thing that struck her as off about the boy, who otherwise looked more like an average high school kid then she did.

Still, Raven couldn't help but feel there was something else about this boy. Something she was missing…

"Sorry, Dash," Danny said, "I was in a hurry, and-!" the jock, now known as Dash, pinned the boy against the lockers. Raven felt her eyes narrow instinctively as she bristled upon seeing the boys raised fist.

"Oh, you'll be sorry alright!" Dash growled.

And just like that it was very clear to Raven who the true troublemaker was.

"Put him down!" Raven called out loudly, "Now!" Dash scowled at Raven as she approached the two of them, everyone else in the hall was giving her the same look she'd received after insulting Paulina.

"Who do you think you are to tell me what to do?" Dash snapped. Then, he got a good look at Raven's outfit and groaned. "Great. Another Goth freak. Damn, Fenton, you attract them like flies."

"I'm only going to tell you to put him down one more time before I lose my temper." Raven said coldly. If any one of her teammates had been there at the time, they probably would've told the boy to heed her last warning and find a nice, quiet place in the artic circle to safely spend the rest of his days.

"Then what're you gonna do, huh freak?" Dash asked. Raven gave him a glare she'd perfected on Beastboy, the same look that could stop a war before it ever started. She didn't have to use her powers, that glare alone was fine. In fact, it had Dash shivering involuntarily and then blushing after he caught himself.

"Here!" The jock snapped, throwing Danny at Raven. The boy stumbled a bit, but managed to catch himself in time to keep either of them from ending up on the floor, which made Raven wonder if he had any sort of training in fighting. "Have fun hiding behind your new girlfriend, Fen-toni!" And, with one last sneer, the jock and his entourage were off. Raven scowled after them a bit before turning to Danny.

"You alright,"

"Yeah," Danny responded with a reassuring smile. At Raven's slightly skeptical look, he added, "I'm Dash's favorite human punching bag, so I've gotten used to being shoved around a bit." Raven's frown turned disapproving.

"Why don't you just tell a teacher?" She demanded, a little sharper then she should've. She didn't like it when people just rolled over and accepted things like that.

"They wouldn't do anything," Danny said, shrugging, "Dash is the Star Quarterback of the Football team, he could get away with murder here as far as they're concerned. It's only if I fight back that they take action, and then it's only to give me a detention." Raven scowled, angered at the unfair nature of the school she was supposed to be helping. "I try to keep out of trouble the best I can around here, so I don't usually fight back unless I think Dash is gonna do some serious damage, or if he's threatening one of my friends."

"That's noble of you," Raven said, raising an eyebrow. After hearing the teacher's say what a troublemaker this boy was, she was a little surprised to find a loyal, shy kids who just seemed to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Danny laughed slightly, blushing.

"Yeah, well I don't have many friends, so I might as well stick up for the ones that do put up with me," He admitted. Raven smiled.

"Well put," She said, liking the boy a little more already. She knew what he was talking about. After all, the greatest gift she'd been given on earth were her fellow Titans.

"Anyways, I haven't seen your face around here before, are you new?" Danny asked.

"Just moved here yesterday," Raven responded, "Rachel Venn, call me Rae,"

"Danny Fenton," Danny said, grinning and nodding to Raven's bracelet, "Nice hidden weaponry, by the way. Gotta lot of enemies?" Raven smiled wryly even though the question had been a joke.

"More then you'll ever know," She said honestly. Danny laughed.

"I hear that," He grinned. "So where you headed?"

"English," Raven said, glancing at the clock, "And I have about ten seconds to get there," Danny's eyes widened and he wheeled to face the clock as well, muttering profanities under his breath, Danny grabbed Raven's spike-free wrist and dragged her down the hall at top speed.

"Oh, man, we're gonna be late!"

"Hey!" Raven protested, stumbling as she tried to keep up with Danny, "Isn't Lancer's English class that way?" she pointed to the room she'd been heading to. Danny gave her a confused look.

"Of course not. That's the Boy's Bathroom. It's under construction now, too. Dunno who took the sign down…" Raven barely heard Danny, took busy trying to reign her temper so the drinking fountains (which were groaning in protest right now) wouldn't explode on her.

It turned out that Raven and Danny made it to class literally without a moment to spare, both completely out of breath from their ten second sprint to the other side of the school.

"Impressive, Mr. Fenton," The balding teacher said in amusement, "And I was looking forward to another of your riveting tales…" A few classmates chuckled as a blushing Danny made his way to his seat. Raven, on the other hand, was left standing, waiting for her seat to be assigned. "Ah, you must be Miss Venn,"

"Yeah," Raven answered, glancing around the rest of the class. Her eyes fell on an all too familiar Latino girl and blonde, both of with were smirking at her.

"Well, Miss Venn, I hope you're up for an interesting and fun-filled journey into the world of modern fiction." He said with a smile, "That goes for the rest of you as well. Everyone in this class must do a report on a book published in the last five years. And it cannot be one of the Harry Potter books." This was met with groans and grumbles from the students. "Well then, We'll be heading down to the library to find suitable books for everyone today. Then on Wednesday and Thursday we'll be typing out reports in the computer lab, (Four page minimum, 12 pt font, single-spaced.) and the whole kit and caboodle is due Friday at the beginning of the hour."

"Four pages?" Star wailed, "How do we finish that in two days?"

"Find time, Miss Kathley," Lancer said dryly, "This project is worth a hundred points, and I don't give extensions. Any questions?" Raven had to give credit where credit was due; Mr. Lancer wasted no time. "Good, let's go then, shall we?"

And, with that, the class lined up begrudgingly to head to the library for their reports.

_**

* * *

**_

It was two hours later that Raven had realized exactly what she'd forgotten that morning.

Her lunch.

As such, the sorceress was now stuck eating the cafeteria food, charging it to her account with the solemn promise of bringing money tomorrow. Which such out of the way, Raven had thought she was in the clear until she sat down and actually tried the food served at Casper High.

One bite gave her a new appreciation for Tameranian food.

No joke, either. It was seriously _that bad_. No wonder all the popular kids had their senior or junior friends (the only classes allowed off campus for lunch) bring them food from the outside world. Not that a restaurant called 'Nasty Burger' sounded any more appealing, but considering that the jocks and cheerleaders seemed to be eating it without a problem, Raven doubted it was as bad as the name suggested.

"Mind if we sit here?" Raven jerked up, surprised. Standing in front of her, bag lunches in hand, were Danny Fenton and the girl who had covered for him in Homeroom. Danny was smiling warmly, but the girl had a look of wary distrust. "Everywhere else is full, and Valerie and I usually eat here, anyways,"

"Knock yourselves out," Raven responded, shrugging. Actually, she was surprised. Danny had been the only student to speak directly to her after the Paulina/Dash thing.

"Heard you dissed Paulina before you got on Dash's case this morning," Danny said as he sat, "That's gotta make you one of the bravest people to ever enter Casper High,"

What's the big deal?" Raven asked, scoffing. "They're just teenagers, just like everyone else here." Valerie's sandwich stopped midway to her mouth.

"You've never been in high school before, have you?" She said, looking at Raven suspiciously. Raven's eyes narrowed.

"I was home schooled before, so what?" She challenged. It wasn't technically a lie. Everything she knew she'd learned either from the Monks of Azarath or by studying it herself in her home at Titan's Tower.

"Poor, Poor Rae…" Danny sighed teasingly, shaking his head.

"What?" Raven asked, a little concerned now.

"You just committed the ultimate social suicide." Valerie explained, "Publicly dissing the two most popular kids in our class in one day is something not tolerated at any high school in the world. You're not just unpopular now, you've hit the lowest of the low. You're gonna be the butt of almost every prank from now till Graduation,"

"I think I can handle myself against airheads and bullies," Raven said disdainfully.

"Paulina's not that bad," Danny defended the cheerleader. Valerie rolled her eyes and leaned across the table to have a private word with Raven.

"You'll have to excuse Danny," She whispered loudly, "It's the hormones. They kill off brain cells in boys, you know," Raven couldn't hide a grin at that.

"Wouldn't surprise me," She responded, thinking of all the stupid things Beastboy would do to get a girl's attention.

"Hey!" Danny said, offended, "I can hear you, you know!"

"Yeah, we know, lover-boy," Valerie said teasingly, "Now eat your stupid sandwich. I don't want you complaining of hunger pains in Gym."

"When do I ever complain?" Danny said defensively. Valerie gave him a look, "Don't answer that, Rae's probably already traumatized enough for the day if this is really her first day of public schooling," Then Danny frowned at Raven, noticing her empty tray, "Uh, hey, where's your lunch?"

"Funny thing you just mention traumatizing experiences…" Raven said dryly, glancing at the chief. Danny bust out laughing.

"Take half of my lunch," He offered chivalrously, "My mom always over packs it, anyways. I think she hopes it'll keep me from looking so skinny."

"Good luck there," Valerie snorted, "You could eat enough to save a small country and still not gain an ounce."

"What can I say, I lucked out with metabolism," Danny grinned, "Jazz too. We both take after Mom there…"

"Thanks," Raven said with a smile as she accepted the food Danny offered her.

"Hey, I owe you for the save from Dash, remember?" Danny said gently, smiling again. Raven couldn't help for notice the look that passed over Valerie's face at that smile. Pure, undisguised jealousy, with was quickly replaced with an indifferent mask.

_'Interesting…' _Raven thought, watching the two as she chewed her half of Danny's sandwich thoughtfully. _'Very interesting.'_

_**

* * *

**_

**WoM- _Wow, this is a long chapter! Five Pages longer then the first chapter. Anyways, I hoped you all liked it! Don't be afraid to review! I only bite in self defense!_**

_**

* * *

**_

**Thanks to-**

DannysGirlForever

Tetsukon

shadowspinner1

Fuzzytoesocks

Jamie

Invader Johnny

Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse

Millie M. Banshee

DSK

Aida Vargas

epobbp

CelloSolo2007

Jaaku-san

phantomgirl07

k

enigmatic penguin

weras

_**

* * *

**_

**Questions-**

**Jamie** _(Sorry, but Probably not. Maybe a little crushing, but nothing more serious then that. I'm going a different way romance wise for this fic...)_

**Aida Vargas** _('laugh' Yikes! Thank God my parents are more understanding then that, even if my aunts and uncles aren't. Though they might ship me off to Catholic school if they could hear half the conversations I've had with my friends on the bus, and I know dad was considering it when he found out I had my naval pierced.)_

**enigmatic penguin** _(Not really a question, but I had to respond. You mentioned my horrible grammar, and I wish to ackknowlage and apologize for it. I'm trying to get these chapters out as fast as I can, and sometimes I miss things at first. From the way you write, though, you seem t have a sharp eye. If it's not too much to ask, can you beta for me? Leave me your e-mail and I'll contact you if you're interested!)_

**_

* * *

_**

**Next update-**_ December 3rd._

_**See you then!**_


	3. Friends?

**WoM- _Yayness! You guys are all really awesome, you know that, right? Here's installment three, hope it lives up to expectations!_**

**_

* * *

_**

"_Never raise your hands to your kids. It leaves your groin unprotected."_

_**-Red Buttons**_

_**

* * *

**_

_"You know, this has to be some sort of union dispute," One of the vultures griped. "We haven't had a vacation or sick leave for the decade we've been working for the Master!"_

_"Ghosts don't get sick," One of his companions reminded him._

_"…Oh, yeah…."_

_The three flew in silence for a moment longer, before one of them spotted something that looked like an ominous black plane. It wasn't as large as the places you saw flying around in the mortal realm, but it did look eerily high-tech, in the same forbidding way Vlad and Skulker's labs did._

_"Uh, think the boss might consider that 'something useful?'" he asked, pointing the device out to his ever constant companions._

_"Well? Go check it out!" One of the other vultures snapped._

_"WHAT? Why me?" Vulture #1 demanded._

_"You're the one that found it!" Vulture #2 pointed out._

_"Exactly! I've done my fair share for the day, YOU check it out!"_

_"Uh, guys?" Vulture #3, usually silent, tried to interrupt, his eyes wide._

_"How is saying a plane MIGHT be useful doing your fair share, you nincompoop?"_

_"Oh yeah, well pttui on you!"_

_"Guys?" Vulture #3 said again, this time a little more urgent._

_"Look, this won't get us anywhere let's all go down there and get it over with," Vulture #2 suggesting as a reluctant diplomatic._

_"Yeah," Vulture #1 sighed in defeat. "Might as well or else we're gonna have to-!"_

_"RUN!" Vulture #3 squawked, leaving his companions behind in a fury or feathers. The other two were confused for a moment before they saw a dark silhouette looming over them._

_"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

"Maybe we should call her. You know, just to see how things are going…"

Robin raised an eyebrow at Beastboy's carefully casual tone.

"Raven's in school right now," Robin reminded him, "We're only supposed to call her if it's an emergency. We can't risk blowing her cover Especially on the first day."

"Oh," Beastboy said. "Right…" minutes ticked by. It felt strangely awkward in Titan's Tower without Raven's presence for everyone, but Beastboy was most obvious in his discomfort. He'd shift around, play with loose threads on the couch and whistle random tunes but nothing seemed to satisfy him.

"So," Cyborg broke the silence (Save for Beastboy's rendition of Yankee Doodle Dandy,) "How do you think she's doing?"

"Oh, yes!" Starfire said happily, "I hope Friend Raven has made many new friend she is willing to share with us!"

"Dude, it's RAVEN," Beastboy exclaimed, "Knowing her, they've probably got her on quarantine right now."

"Do you even know what quarantine mean?" Cyborg asked.

"Not a clue," Beastboy admitted. The other Titan's sweat dropped. "Hey, wonder what's on TV…"

"Do you agree with Beastboy, Cyborg?" Starfire asked worriedly. "I'd hate for Friend Raven to feel alone."

"Uhh…" Cyborg said, feeling trapped. It was Robin who came to his rescue.

"I'm sure Raven's fine, Starfire," He assured her. "She's lived through worst then High School, after all…"

_**

* * *

**_

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 3; Friends? _

_**

* * *

**_

"So, let me get this straight," Raven said, frowning, "Your parents are ghost hunters?"

"Yep," Danny grinned. With his impish charms and pretty blue eyes, it wasn't hard to see why Valerie liked him…

"And your dad's a Weapons Supervisor?"

"Well, not right now," Valerie said, too proud to tell the new girl her dad worked nightshifts as a security guard, one of the lowest of the low jobs. (WoM- No disrespect to any hardworking security guards out there, or their children,) "But yeah,"

"Am I the only one who thinks this is an odd match up?" Raven asked dryly. Danny laughed.

"Nope," Danny chuckled, "And I think it's safe to say you'll only find friends like us in Amity Park,"

"I'd bet…" Raven drawled, amused.

Raven usually kept herself from getting too attached to people, especially after the Terra thing. Unfortunately for her, Danny's easygoing and accepting personality was too compelling to ignore for long. And as much as she hated to admit it, he was actually kind of interesting.

Never before had she met someone who portrayed both deep responsibility and laid-back acceptance. It was like someone had combined Beastboy and Robin, and actually made a person who was workable in society. Sort of, anyways.

"Anyways, you mentioned you're into all this ghost stuff, right Rae?" Danny said, "If you want, you can come over to my place after school and I can show you around the lab a bit, introduce you to my parents." Raven's eyebrow raised at that, thinking of the Oh-So-Warm welcome she's received from the school so far.

"You sure about that last one?" She asked. Danny looked confused.

"Uh, yeah?" Danny frowned, "My parents are a little over eccentric-!" This earned him a dry look for Valerie, "-okay, a lot over eccentric, but I'm sure you'd get to like them after a while. Or tolerate them at the very least. The rest of the town has…" Raven suppressed a smile at that.

"No, that's not what I mean," She said, "I meant would you parents really be okay with you being friends with a creepy girl like me?" Raven clarified, using the nickname given to her back home. Danny rolled his eyes.

"No offence or anything, Rae, but Goths are eerily normal when compared to Mom and Dad," He said dryly, "Besides, they didn't mind with Sam, and she was Goth…"

"Mr. And Mrs. Fenton are pretty accepting," Valerie added, clearly irritated she was being left out of the conversation, "So long as you have a pulse you're welcome in their home."

"That seems a little over-trusting to me," Raven said in amusement.

"Where do you think Danny gets it?"

"Hey!" Danny said, clearly insulted. Valerie laughed.

"Ease up, Fenton, I'm just messing with you," She said playfully.

"What kind of world has this become when one can't even rely on his friends?" Danny sighed mournfully. Valerie rolled her eyes and swiped at Danny in jest. He ducked away and jumped up, hiding behind Raven to use her as a sort of human shield.

"Some brave guy you are," Raven snorted.

"You ever take a hit from Val?" Danny countered, "When you do, we'll talk. Until then…" Danny yelped as Dash Baxter walked past him, shoving him painfully into the picnic table.

"Watch it, Baxter!" Valerie snapped, her good mood gone as she glared at the jock.

"Keh. Need your whiney girlfriends to stand up for you, Fenton?" Dash sneered.

"They're my friends, Dash," Danny corrected, "Not that you would know the difference between a friend and a girlfriend, considering you haven't had an actually one of either." Danny flinched after saying that, and Raven realized (In amusement) That was supposed to stay internal dialoged. Dash's face became a ruddy red as those around him choked back snickers.

"You're a dead man, Fenton!" Dash growled, starting forward. Both Raven and Valerie tensed, but before they could do anything another voice stopped everyone.

"Lord of the Flies! Fenton, Baxter! Are you two fighting again?"

"No, Mr. Lancer," Dash answered, shooting Danny a glare that promised retribution. Mr. Lancer frowned after the boy as he and his friends left.

"Danny, may I have a moment of you time, please?" He asked.

"I guess." Danny said in a sullen voice. Then he addressed Raven and Valerie "Be right back. Oh, and Val? If you see Tucker, could you tell him I need to talk to him later?"

"Sure, Danny," Valerie said with a small, encouraging smile. Danny returned it bleakly before he left.

"Any reason he looks like he's off to his own funeral?" Raven asked dryly.

"Mr. Lancer's a real hardhead, and he's been getting on Danny's case a lot recently." Valerie sighed.

"Why?" Raven asked, raising an eyebrow.

"None of your business," Valerie said with a glare. "If Danny wanted you to know, he'd tell you."

"No reason to get so jealous." Raven said dryly.

"I'm not jealous," Valerie said, "It's just I don't trust as easily as Danny. I know your up to something, and I'm gonna find out what," Now it was Raven's turn to glare.

She didn't have much experience with other girls her age, (save the fellow female Titans, and even that was pretty minimal,) but she could already tell that Valerie would indeed become a headache if Raven let her stew long enough. Upon coming to that conclusion, Raven decided to stop it in her usual blunt way.

"I'm not interested, okay?" She said dryly.

"What?" Valerie said, raising an eyebrow.

"Danny, he's a nice guy, but he's not really my type," Raven explained. "Besides, I'm not exactly most guy's idea of great girlfriend material. So you can rest easy, your crush is safe," Valerie blushed then sighed.

"Look," She said begrudgingly, "Sorry if I come off as cold, but I've liked Danny for a while now and I'm hoping he likes be back. Especially now that Manson's out of the picture."

"You won't have any competition in me," Raven promised her.

"Still doesn't mean I trust you," Valerie said. "Like I said, you're not like other people,"

_'How much ectoplasmic energy have these people been exposed to?'_ Raven thought irritably. If ghosts really haunted this place, some of the people here who were more mentally atone to such things should've absorbed enough stray ectoplasm to have a strong sixth sense, and therefore feel the difference in the aura Raven put out.

Still, why was it just Valerie then…?

"Back," Danny said glumly.

"Hey," Valerie smiled, "Didn't go well?"

"The parents have been called to chaperone the school trip to Jump City." Danny groaned, "My life is officially over…" Raven froze.

"We're taking a trip to Jump City?" She asked, alarmed.

"Not till the end of the school year," Valerie admitted, "But yeah."

"It's a week long, and a pretty big deal," Danny explained. "Last year's class got a tour of Titan's Tower. Think they cancelled that this year though. Something about Beastboy and a Teletubbies marathon…" Raven couldn't suppress a smirk as she remembered Cyborg's addition to the terrible punishments they'd heaped on Beastboy for holding tours without their knowledge.

"Still, there's lots more to do," Valerie smiled, "Danny and I as tour partners since Tuck's already signed up with Melissa. But we should all be in the same group."

"You've already picked partners?" Raven raised an eyebrow.

"You pick or the school picks for you," Danny gave a wicked looking grin, "And that's NOT something you want to put up with for a week," The bell rang and everyone gathered their trash, throwing them away on the way out.

"You better find someone to sign on as your partner soon," Valerie warned, "Or you'll end up with someone like Nathan."

"Who's Nathan?" Raven asked, frowning. Valerie pointed to a boy with frizzy red hair, acne, huge glasses and braces walking with his fellow band geeks before she and Danny parted ways with the sorceress. Raven made a face, "…Joy…"

_**

* * *

**_

Danny grinned as he and Raven left sixth period, eyeing her dark scowl in amusement.

"Where do teachers come up with this stuff? She demanded, "A twelve page essay, a book report, a study guide for a test I apparently have to take this Friday and a vocabulary sheet?"

"Welcome to High School," Danny laughed. Then he brightened when something else caught his attention. "Tucker!" Puzzled, Raven turned to see who the boy was waving to.

Coming towards them were two people, a boy and a girl. The girl Raven recognized from the bus stop that morning, but the boy she didn't know.

He wasn't the coolest looking guy, but he certainly seemed nice enough when he grinned at Danny.

"Hey!" He said, "Valerie told me you needed to talk. Who's this?"

"Oh, right." Danny said, wincing when he realized he'd forgotten the introductions, "Rae, this is Tucker, a friend of mine since forever. Tuck, this is Rachel Venn, but she prefers Rae,"

"The girl who slugged Dash?" Tucker clarified.

"I did?" Raven asked, surprised.

"It's high school, Rae," Danny grinned, "It takes exactly three seconds for someone toblow something out ofproportionsaround here. I'm guessing there are many, many alternate versions by now."

"Haven't really paid any attention to them," Tucker shrugged. "But I think I've heard around three or four so far…"

"Great," Raven said dryly, "Is there anything _good_ about high school?"

"Nope," Danny and Tucker answered together as one. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Anyways, man, what did you want to tell me?" Tucker asked.

"Later," Danny said pointedly, glancing at Raven and Melissa. "I'll call you or something."

"Sure, Danny," Tucker said, frowning. If Danny couldn't say anything in front of the girls, it was probably ghost related, "Come on, Melissa, let's go to the Nasty Burger for a bite. Nice to meet you, Rae. Later, Danny!"

"See you round, Tuck," Danny responded, "Come on, Rae, Jazz is probably getting impatient."

"Jazz?" Raven questioned.

"My sister," Danny sighed, "She's a Junior here. She can drive, so she usually takes me to school in the morning and always brings me home."

"How is this a bad thing?" Raven asked. She would give almost everything in the world to avoid the bus crowd every day.

"well, she can get a little naggy and over-protective…" Danny admitted as he led her out towards the bustling Parking Lot, "Ah, there she is, and Val's with her. JAZZ!" Danny missed Raven's slight flinch at the mention of his other friend, no looking forward to spending more time with the girl.

Still, the ghost hunters would probably be the best place to start looking as far as the ghost front went. They'd have more and more knowledgeable information then Mrs. Ishiyama. And while she had no intention of using Danny, she didn't see why she couldn't take advantage of an opportunity that practically fell into her lap.

"Hey Danny," A pretty red head smiled at Raven's companion, "Who's your friend?"

"Rachel Venn," Raven introduced herself, "You can call me Rae,"

"Jasmine Fenton," Danny's sister replied smiling, "Jazz. Everyone set? You have all your homework, Danny?"

"Yes," Danny groaned, climbing into the passenger seat.

"Are you sure? You know Lancer has-!"

"I've got it, Jazz!" Danny said, looking annoyed.

"I'm just saying," Jazz sighed, climbing into the driver's side as Valerie and Raven got in the back, "Everyone buckled in?"

"Yes, Jazz," Valerie chimed, mimicking a schoolchild and grinning at Danny. Jazz rolled her eyes.

"You've been spending far too much time with my brother, Valerie…" Jazz grumbled. Danny and Valerie laughed. "So, Rae, where are you from?"

"New York," Raven answered.

"The city?" Jazz pressed.

"Yeah,"

"What's it like there?"

"It's alright," Jazz sighed when it became apparent that Raven wasn't going to elaborate on her answers willingly, and Danny and Valerie snickered. "So anyways, why are you two coming over? Some new project?"

"Nah," Danny said, "Raven's into the ghost hunting stuff and Valerie's already got the go ahead from her dad to come over for dinner so mom can tell her what she needs to bring for the Camping trip this weekend." Jazz made a face.

"Why is it that everything nowadays leads back to ghost hunting?" The redhead griped.

"Jazz is still mad she was wrong about ghosts not existing," Danny explained to Raven with a grin.

"DANNY!" Jazz said, taking advantage of the red light to smack her little brother. Danny laughed.

Raven couldn't help but smile. They were bickering, sure, but it was a good bickering, like Cyborg and Beastboy. It was obvious the Fenton siblings were close, most likely because of their parents odd career path. More and more, Raven was wondering just what kind of people Mr. And Mrs. Fenton were.

"Here we are," Jazz said, stopping, "this is our house." Raven blinked at the enormous neon sign reading FENTONWORKS over the most noticeable house in the block, if not city.

"Couldn't tell," Raven said casually, shrugging her messenger bag up. Danny and Jazz blushed as Valerie choked back laugher.

Raven trailed behind the three as they made their way up to the house. Jazz immediately started calling out for her parents while Danny and Valerie took up positions in the kitchen. Raven trailed behind her, looking around.

Compared to the outside, the inside of the Fenton's home looked relatively normal, save an over abundance of ghost based decorations and family photos, most of which consisted of the grinning mug of a man Raven could only assume was Danny's father on the loose family resemblance. Raven smiled wryly as she studied this picture, deciding that the man didn't look all that bright.

Then Raven's eyes landed on a plaque that hung on a wall nearby. She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow upon reading it.

**FENTON FAMILY RULES;**

AS COMPOSED BY MADDIE FENTON

**5.)** COMPLETE ALL CHORES AND FOLLOW

SET CURFEW RIGIDLY (THIS MEANS YOU,

DANNY!)

**4.)** NO UNAUTHORIZED PERSONNEL IN

THE LAB AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT. THIS

MEANS NO NON-FENTONS, SAVE TUCKER,

SAM AND THE GREYS.

**3.)** NO STRANGE BOYS WHO HAVEN'T

BEEN INTERVIEWED BY MYSELF, YOUR

FATHER AND DANNY (JAZZ)

**2.)** NO TOYING WITH ANY MORE

EXPERIMENTAL EQUIPMENT.

**1.)** ALL BASIC SAFETY PROCEDURES

MUST BE FOLLOWED AT ALL TIMES,

INCLUDING FINDING COVER ANY

TIME THE WORD 'DUCK' IS YELLED.

"Jazz insisted on that last one," Danny said behind Raven, noticing what she was reading. Raven turned and fought a smile at his grimace. "Dad thought it was unnecessary, but then again all the rules are pretty ridiculous."

"Except number three, right?" Valerie grinned, "Don't deny it, Danny, your family won't let any boy you consider unworthy within three feet of Jazz,"

"Jazz can date whoever she want," Danny said, rolling his eyes, "Just not her last boyfriend was all…"

"Mm-hm…" Valerie said, giving him an unconvinced look.

"What? The guy was a total loser!" Danny said defensively.

"Speaking of losers, when are you gonna tell your parents about the punishment you got thanks to Dash?"

"Tonight, I think," Danny sighed. "It's not gonna be pretty…"

"I don't know about that," Valerie said, "I mean, you mom said she's always wanted to talk to the one with the powers, right? Raven or whatever?"

Raven stopped examining the contents of the room to consider the sheer irony of this moment as Danny sighed.

"Well…"

"DUCK!" Valerie and Danny hit the floor at Jazz's yell, Danny pulling Raven along for the ride before she had time to register what was going on. Above them, a whistling rocket lit the room in a blinding green light before it crashed out the window in a spray of glass, exploding in mid-air outside.

"Mom! Dad! You nearly killed Danny and his friends!" Jazz yelled, glaring down the open door as Valerie Danny and Raven all slowly got out from under the table, just in case another missile was heading their way.

"Don't be silly, dear," a warm female voice responded as two sets of footfall were heard coming upstairs (one much heavier then the other.) "The Fenton Bombers are made of a special ectoplasmic residue that only affects ghosts. It couldn't hurt a human…"

Two figures came out from the downstairs and into the kitchen. One was a woman in a blue Hazmat suit with red goggles and the other a burly man in a similar suit, only in a bright neon orange that reminded Raven vaguely of Starfire. Both seemed quite happy and since neither Danny or Valerie looked upset (Or even all that concerned) with what had just transpired, Raven relaxed a little again, though she still eyed the pair as warily as if she expected them to be the next thing to explode.

"Oh, who's this?" The female of the pair asked. Raven could only assume the woman's gaze was on her, since the goggles hid her eyes.

"This is Rachel Venn, a new girl at school," Danny introduced, "Rae, this is-!"

"Jack and Maddie Fenton!" The man bellowed with a wide grin, "the leading scientists for ghost hunting technologies! Nice to meetcha! Say, do you like ghosts?"

And, just like that, Raven found out just how abnormal the Fenton hose truly was…

_**

* * *

**_

**WoM- _Has anyone else out there ever noticed what pretty eyes Billy Joe from Green Day has? Off topic, I know. Anywho, that was chapter three! More about the Fentons first meeting with Raven next chapter. (Tee Hee!)_**

_**

* * *

**_

**Thanks to;**

Twin Kats

enigmatic penguin

Titan6

Jaaku-san

Invader Johnny

Tetsukon

Rei Tamashii

Kara Crane

Anasumi

epobbp

phantomgirl07

fang 50

soaring-bright-flame

Unit 1860

CelloSolo2007

Raiki-Casinio

Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse

k

Firehedgehog

Rosadina formerly Tima

Aida Vargas

Reggie Tuesday

_**

* * *

**_

**Questions;**

**Twin Kats** _(I know, my firends have already told me and I signed a petition going around to axe that rule. No such luck so far, though. I decided to cut it down by only responding to questions and praying that people here are nicer then they were over in the Anime Section, who got one of my old pennames banned._ 'grumbles' _Damn penguin __(Thank you, and it's true! I don't want to bother you if you're busy, I'll just try and be a little more careful._ 'laughs' _A lot of people say they admire my ability to keep a deadline. Truth is, I've got ADD, so if I don't keep everything on a schedule, I'm screwed.)_

**Jaaku-san** _(Thank you! And yeah. Don't get me wrong, I like Sam/Danny but when you start seeing it everywhere..._ 'laughs' _Yeah, I like the Fenton Comms too. It gives Jazz 24/7 nagging rights! Being an older sis is just TOO fun sometimes...)_

**Invader Johnny** _(I don't have anything against goths or any one else for that matter. My best friends consist of a rather preppy girl who's about as sweet as you can get_ (If a little naive)_ a gothic girl who has no internal dialog whatsoever, a video game freak who is almost crelly sarcastic and me, the creepy girl no one wants to look in the eyes who's eerily random._ (That's how **we** describe **ourselves,** by the way) _it's the jerks who like to think they're better then people who seem to have a problem with them, and you've gotta admit the DP world seems to be full of thise kind of people. Thanks, and I will! PS. Is your penname a combo of Invader Zim and Johnny the Homicidal Manic? Great graphc novels, those two!)_

**Anasumi** _(Thank you! Yeah, no matter how I worked with this story, I just couldn't bring Sam and Tucker in and keep it on the path I wanted it to go... Though Sam's probably ready to kill me by now. Sorry Sam! Yeah, OOC annoys me almost as much as lack of originality. Thank you again, I'll try to improve my grammar.)_

**soaring-bright-flame** _(Thanks! Blow up the boys bathroom?_ 'blinks then grins evilly' _hmmm...)_

**Unit 1860** _(Thank you. And no, no Trigon in this story. Your suggestion has given me an idea for a sequel, though...)_

**CelloSolo2007** 'laughing'_ don't feel too bad, you're the first to notice. How perspective of you! Have a cookie!_ 'gives CelloSolo2007 a cookie,' _I couldn't resist, though. I love playing with names. Glad you liked that, though.)_

**Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse** _(I hear that. That combined with the fact that almost nothing on the menu is vegetarian means the days I eat school lunches are few and far between.)_

**Rosadina formerly Tima**_ (Three fics? Wow! Thank you! I'm glad you like this story so much!)_

**Aida Vargas** _(Auug... I'm offending people left and right today... I'm really sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I just thought the irony was amusing, not the situation itself. I completely understand why you'd be upest in that kind f situation. God knows I wouldn't let them take me without a fight...)_

_**

* * *

**_

**Next update;** _December 6th_

_**See ya then!**_


	4. Meet The Fentons

**WoM- 'dizzy' _pretty stars…_ 'shakes head' _Sorry, folks, I haven't been feeling well lately. _'groans' _Ah, well, just 40 more hours of school and then I'm free! At least until January 2nd… Oh, and I've already got one of my presents! A 144 set of Prismacolor markers. O.O so many colors… so pretty…_**

**_Oh, and before I forget, I'm sorry for posting the wrong update date at the end of last chapter. I didn't catch it until the 8th, and felt like an idiot when I noticed. If there's ever another problem with me missing a date check my Bio, I should have something posted there under_ 'Notes.'**

_**MY DEEPEST APOLOGIES TO DannysGirlForever! Didn't mean to exclude you. SORRY!**_

_**

* * *

**_

"_I will not eat oysters. I want my food dead. Not sick -- not wounded -- dead."_

_**-Woody Allen**_

_**

* * *

**_

_"What do you mean they didn't get away?" Vlad asked sharply, glaring at the battered and bandaged bird in front of him._

_"Just what I said, boss," The vulture responded. "We saw the plane, some kind of black shadow came after us, I high tailed it outta there and the other two didn't make it!" Vlad frowned._

_"A black shadow?" He repeated. "And the plane was black as well?"_

_"Black as death," The vulture confirmed._

_"Did you see any ghosts nearby?" Vlad asked, "Or where they were headed?"_

_"No ghosts," The vulture said, "And I think they were headed out of the Snow Sector, and towards the Endless," Vlad sighed in a defeated soft of way._

_"That is all," He said to the bird, dismissing it with a wave of his hand._

_"But what about-!" The vulture began to protest. A cold glare silenced the question, though, and he lumbered obediently out of the office. Vlad sighed._

_"So, the rumors are true…" he murmured, glancing at the glowing green newspaper in front of him. It was a Ghost Zone tabloid, Telling Tales. Usually, he didn't pick the nonsense up, but a headline had caught his eye that he decided was worthy of further investigation._

_Now Vlad scowled at the paper, as if it'd been the cause of this recent problem in his life. Without glancing at it again (He already had it memorized, anyways,) Vlad lazily tossed it into his fire, which exploded with green flames for a moment before settling again._

_Yet without even looking At it, he could already see the headline darken and curl in the flames…_

**_'The Haunters Return'_**

Paulina sighed as she fingered through expensive clothes, not even really looking at them. She wasn't much of a deep thinker, always preferring the more here and now outlook on life, but right now she was wracking her brain out, trying to think of everything she knew about her ghostly crush.

_'He's a hero,'_ She listed off right away, _'wears a lot of black… has gorgeous green eyes and white hair… he fights ghosts…'_ she frowned, unable to think of anything else.

But that was part of Phantom's appeal. He was so… mysterious. She wasn't the only girl to notice, either, but she was the most influential. She was the one with the looks, the money and the charm, so if anyone was gonna win Phantom's heart, it would be her. No one questioned this, no one fought it. So other girls treated him as they did their movie star and musical crushes. They admired from afar, but weren't crazy enough to think they'd actually stand a snowball's chance.

That wasn't Paulina's problem today, though. She had bigger things to worry about, like the big fair that was coming up. Normally, worrying about such thins was below her, but her new obsession with Phantom had made her learn two things about him she hadn't listed off.

**1.)** He nearly always seemed to show up whenever Danny Fenton was around. She didn't know or care about his connections to the loser, other then the fact that it could get her closer to him.

**2.)** Ghosts seemed to make a habit out of showing up to every semi-major event in town. If there was a crowd, you could expect a ghost attack before long. And a ghost attack would mean that Phantom would come to save the day.

So therefore Paulina already had everything plotted out. She would drop hints to Danny that she wanted to see him at the fair, letting his crush on her do the rest of the work for her, and then just wait for the fireworks. After Phantom showed up, she would tell him how she felt and they would live happily ever after, he her Ghostly Hero and she his Latino Princess.

…At least, that how it worked out in her mind, anyways.

Right now, though, she needed to find the perfect outfit to confront Phantom in. Her normal street clothes simply would not do, not for confessions of love. The problem was she didn't know how to dress for her hero.

_'Should I go slinky and sexy?'_ She wondered, _'To show him I'm his perfect match? Or maybe something a little more innocent so he'll let his guard down? Should I dress to look tough, so I can look like his super girl? And what color should I wear…?' _Paulina pouted. Decisions, decisions…

She took a step back, knocking into someone.

"Excuse you!" She snapped, glaring. The man frowned at her, then started away without a word. Paulina glared.

"Don't mind Alex," A girl's voice said beside her, "He's a mute." Paulina raised an eyebrow at the person who was talking to her, not seeing them too well as the shadows seemed to cloak them.

"Like I care," She snapped, "I'm just trying to find the perfect outfit for my meeting with Phantom!" Paulina got the impression that the person raised an eyebrow.

"Phantom?" They repeated, "Danny Phantom? The ghost-child?"

"Is there any other?" Paulina snapped irritably. There was a glint of white teeth.

"No…" The person responded, "I suppose not… I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name…?"

"Paulina," The Latino sighed, "Now will you leave me alone?" And, turning on her heels, the girl started away huffily.

"Paulina." The figure in the shadows repeated, a plan forming in their eyes, "We'll be in touch, my pretty…"

_**

* * *

**_

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 3; Meet the Fentons _

_**

* * *

**_

"Now Jack, calm down," Maddie scolded her husband as she would a young child, "You wouldn't want to scare off Danny's little friend,"

"Nice sentiment, mom, but probably way too late…" Danny muttered. Only Valerie and Raven heard him, and both had to smile at the boy.

"Yes, Maddie," Jack sighed before turning back to Raven, "Seriously, though, do you like ghosts?"

"I'm interested in the Spirit Realms in general," Raven admitted, "But I haven't looked too much into the Ghost Zone. I was hoping to learn a little bit more about it while I was here…"

"Then have you come to the right place!" Jack bellowed, grabbing Raven by the arm and dragging her down to the lab, oblivious to her startled yell.

"Sweetie, I said calm down!" Maddie yelled, racing after him. Jazz, Valerie and Danny watched them go, blinking.

Moments later, there was another explosion from the lab.

"Well, then," Jazz said conversationally, "Guess you won't bee seeing too much more of Rae around after today…" Danny sighed.

"Come on," He said, "Let's stop dad before he kills her,"

"Good idea," Jazz agreed, "We've got enough problems paying for all the property damage dad does on the job without having to worry about paying for pain and suffering, too." Danny shot his sister a dry look and Valerie laughed before the three of them headed downstairs.

"And this is the Fenton Fisher!" Jack was explaining loudly, "We use it to fish ghosts out of the Ghost Zone. Still need to untangle the darned thing. Oh! And here's the Fenton Peeler! We use it to peel a ghost apart, layer by layer, to see what's on the inside!"

"Dad," Danny sighed, "How about giving it a rest? I think you're scaring Rae,"

_'You don't know the half of it,'_ Raven thought, staring at the large man. Here she thought nothing was more hyper then Starfire on a sugar buzz, but Jack Fenton had proven her dead wrong.

"Hang on, son," Jack said, fishing through his old inventions. "Ah! The Ghost Gabbler! I was wondering what'd happened to this!" Danny flinched and Jazz groaned at that.

"Ghost Gabbler?" Raven repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep!" Jack said happily, "It takes the strange noises ghosts make-!"

"And translates them into words you and I use every day," Jazz and Danny finished for him, rolling their eyes.

"Most ghosts we've met speak English anyways, dad," Danny reminded him.

"Never too careful!" Jack said firmly, "Here, give it a shot!" He thrusted the device under Raven's nose, turning it on.

"Uhh…" She blinked at it, "I really don't-!"

"Come on!" Jack grinned, "Don't be shy!" Raven sighed.

"Boo," She said in a monotone. The invention didn't make a sound, and Jack looked put out.

"Darned thing must be broken again…" He muttered.

"Again?" Valerie grinned at Jack.

"Yep," Jack said, "Last time we had it on, and it wouldn't do a thing except to repeat whatever Danny said. Still haven't figured out what's wrong with it…"

"I think that's enough inventions for today, Dad," Jazz said quickly.

"Nonsense!" Jack said eagerly, pushing all five teens into chairs, "Just a few more!"

"How many is a few?" Raven asked Danny suspiciously. Danny sighed.

"Honestly?" He asked, raising an eyebrow, "We'll be here all night." This was punctuated by the Ghost Gabber, which decided to start working suddenly with a soothing;

_"We'll be here all night. Fear me."_

_**

* * *

**_

And there all night they were. Raven dozed off somewhere between the Ghost Gloves and the Fenton Toothbrush, after realizing that nothing Jack was saying could actually help her. Jazz and Danny tuned him out far earlier, in favor of a riveting game of I Spy. Only Valerie seemed to be maintaining some sort of vague attention, though the sorceress couldn't begin to understand why.

Finally, though, Maddie realized that the teens were bored to the point of seriously considering locking Jack into the Fenton Stockades and 'accidentally' forgetting to let him out until morning and suggested that they start dinner. Relief ended, however, when Maddie offered to prepare a special recipe she'd been working on.

"Why is it I'm always the one who has to cook?" Danny grumbled, glowering at Jazz who was sitting on the counter.

"Because you're the only one in the family who can cook something passably edible that won't eat you back," Jazz answered. "Are they behaving in there, Valerie? It's too quiet for my comfort…"

"Yeah," Valerie said, "I think they're working on the Ghost Gabber again…"

"Is it considered normal to ban a parent from the kitchen?" Raven couldn't help but ask.

"It is when their food gives you nightmares," Jazz responded, "Ten to one says that if we'd let her go through on it, we'd be fighting off evil mutant mash potato monsters with teeth right now,"

"So therefore, mom's not allowed to make meals the entire family must be forced to eat." Danny finished for her, putting the spoon down, "Meaning I get stuck with it,"

"Hey, I would cook, too, but you already know how that would turn out." Jazz said defensively. Danny chuckled.

"Fair enough," He said, smirking. Jazz glared at him and threw a dishtowel at his head, with he caught easily.

"Are your parents always such…" Raven wondered how she could put it so she wouldn't offend the two siblings.

"Freaks?" Jazz supplied.

"Ghost Fanatics?" Danny said at the same time.

"I think Danny's sounds nicer," She said, smirking slightly.

"Yep," Jazz answered, sounding as though it pained her to admit it.

"Since before college," Danny piped up. "But you get used to it,"

"Just like you get used to random attack by various malevolent ghosts?" Valerie grinned at the two. Raven used this as a way to get into the whole 'What-Do-You-Know-About-Phantom' thing she was supposed to be looking into.

"Speaking of which," She started, "What's with that Phantom guy? Is he one of those malevolent ghosts, or is he on our side?" Not exactly as subtle as she could've made it, but it wasn't like she was dealing with evil criminal masterminds here, just a few ordinary teens in a not-so-ordinary town.

Raven didn't bother with this thought too long, though, too intent on watching the facial expressions of her classmates to see their reactions to the issue. Both Fenton siblings seemed to falter for a moment at the question, exchanging looks that made Raven raise an eyebrow. Valerie on the other hand scowled darkly.

"He's a menace!" she hissed, "A danger to everyone! He's responsible for an attack on the mayor, you know. Among other things…" Valerie brooded here for a second, her eyes flashing, "That's how he got the status of _'Public Ghost Enemy #1'_ around here." Raven was about to ask more questions when she heard a familiar beeping sound from her messenger bag. She frowned at it, annoyed, as everyone else watched her curiously.

"Sorry," She sighed, "I've gotta take that…" She picked up her bag as the sound stopped, and turned to Jazz, "Is there a room around here I can use?" She asked. "I need some privacy."

"Sure," The redhead said, smiling brightly, "There's a bathroom upstairs. Let me show you the way,"

"That's not nece-!" Too late. Jazz was already on her way up the stairs, and Raven sighed in annoyance. Deciding there was nothing else she could to, Raven followed the girl up the stairs and to the bathroom obediently. "Thanks…" She said, about to go in. She was stopped, though, when Jazz grabbed her arm. Curious, the sorceress turned to see the girl biting her lip hesitantly before working up the courage to say something.

"Phantom isn't evil, you know," She said firmly, "He's actually saved me more times then I care to count. I admit, he's not perfect, and he does have a dark side, but that shouldn't matter if he's helping people, right?" Raven gave the girl a startled look. Then, she remembered her own dark side. And those of her friends…

"No," She said softly, "I suppose it doesn't," Jazz smiled, looking relieved.

"Um, hey, one last thing…" She said shyly. "Are you a ghost hunter?" Raven stared at her.

"What?" Jazz laughed slightly and blushed.

"Okay this is gonna sound really stupid, but we've had ghost hunters try and steal my parent's job and weapons before. And it's not that we think you're untrustworthy, it's just… well… Not many kids your age like all this ghost stuff,"

"I'm not like most people," Raven answered, thinking that was probably the biggest understatement to ever come out of her mouth, "But to answer your question, no I'm not a ghost hunter." Jazz looked even more relieved.

"Good," She said, "I'll leave you alone now, you probably need to get that call," And, with one last wave back, Jazz started down the stairs again. Raven watched her go curiously for a moment before entering the bathroom.

She dug around her bag for a bit before finally finding the familiar yellow device. Sitting on the counter of bathroom sink, Raven flipped it open.

"You guys do realize I'm undercover, right?" She said dryly.

_"RAVEN!" _several voices cried back happily.

_"Dude, what took you so-!"_

_"Friend Raven, It is most reassuring to see you are-!"_

_"How is your mission going? Have to contacted the-!"_

_"Man you don't know how crazy we've been going here without-!"_

Raven sighed, forcing back a smile.

"Guys?" She said, silencing all of them, "It's kinda hard to listen to four people at once…" the Titans blushed.

_"How are you faring, Friend Raven?"_ Starfire asked innocently.

"I lived," Raven sighed, "Barely…"

_"That bad?"_ Beastboy asked, grinning.

"Are any of you familiar with the term _'ultimate social suicide?'_" Cyborg laughed.

_"Same ol' Raven!"_ he said grinning.

_"Have you made contact with the ghost yet?"_ Robin asked seriously.

"Not yet," Raven admitted, "But I'm in the house of the ghost hunting couple right now."

_"Already?"_ Cyborg said, genuinely impressed.

"One of their kids has some classes with me," She explained.

_"What are they like?"_ Beastboy asked curiously_. "I've never met a ghost hunter before…"_ Before Raven could answer, there was a loud explosion downstairs, followed by a cry from Jack.

_**"Maddie! Get the Fenton Fire Extinguishers, STAT!"**_

"Let's just say I've never met anyone like them before," Raven answered in dry honesty. "Look, I've got to get back downstairs before Valerie or someone gets suspicious, I'll call you guys again when I get back to my apartment."

_"Roger,"_ Robin said, nodding, _"Good Luck, Raven,"_ And, closing her communicator, Raven left the bathroom.

Only to stop dead when she saw Valerie leaning against the opposite wall, frowning suspiciously.

_**

* * *

**_

"You okay, Val?" Valerie jumped at Danny's voice, tearing her eyes away from glaring suspiciously at Raven's back to turn and meet Danny's concerned frown.

"Fine," She sigh, "It's just… Don't you think there's something weird about her?" Danny looked puzzled for a moment.

"Rae?" He clarified, "Nah. She's blunt, and a little cynical, but don't think she's any weirder then anyone else I've met." Danny grinned, "Actually, Val, if you think about it, you two are a lot alike."

"How so?" Valerie asked dryly, raising an eyebrow.

"You're both sarcastic and don't care about other people's impressions of you, for one," Danny told her, smirking. He laughed when Valerie stuck her tongue out at him.

"I'm serious though, Danny," Valerie said, sobering up, "I get this weird vibe when I'm around her, like she's gonna attack me outta nowhere or something."

"With all these ghost attacks, you think you'd be used to being attack out of nowhere by not," Danny said mildly stirring his stir-fry.

"Dan-ny!" Valerie growled. Danny grinned back before he saw she was serious.

"Rae's fine, Valerie," He said confidently, "I'm sure there's some things she's not telling us, but we all have out secrets, right?"

_'You have no idea…'_ Valerie thought dryly as Jazz re-entered the kitchen.

"How's the food coming?" She asked Danny.

"Bout fifteen minutes," Danny responded.

"Good," She said happily, "I'm starved!"

"Hungry enough to attempt a Frankenstein?" Danny asked grinning and pointing to a chained and locked icebox next to the fridge that carried the warning 'DO NOT OPEN!'

"It's not possible to be that hungry, Danny," Jazz said dryly, shooting the ice box a dirty look.

"Do I wanna know?" Valerie eyed the two, bemused.

"No," They answered as one.

"Hey, Valerie, how's work been coming for your dad?" Jazz asked, "I've been meaning to call him myself but…"

"Alright," Valerie said vaguely, "He got a raise the other day."

"That's good," Jazz said, smiling, "You know, the Maxton Labs in upper Amity are looking for a new security director." Valerie considered this for a moment, then shook her head.

"Thanks Jazz, but dad's still in trouble, thanks to the Axion disaster," She said.

"Yeah, but that was all just ghosts stuff, right?" Jazz persisted, "Mom and Dad could teach you dad how to make ghost shields and weapons. Everything considered, that kind of knowledge would make him the most valuable Security Director in Amity Park." Valerie looked between the two, wide eyed.

"You guys seriously think they'd do that?" Valerie asked, sounding hopeful.

"Of course!" Danny answered at once, happy to have some way to at least begin to make up for all the trouble he'd accidentally caused his friend. "I mean, if it wasn't for your dad, they would've been swamped during the second big attack on Amity. Besides, they know he won't go selling their secrets off to the military or anything," Valerie grinned.

"Thanks, guys," She said.

_'BOOM!'_

_**"Maddie! Get the Fenton Fire Extinguishers, STAT!"**_

The three teens blinked at each other, then burst out laughing as one.

"Dinner's done," Danny chuckled, "Val, can you go get Rae? And Jazz, tell mom and dad to come up after they've taken care of the lab fire."

"Gotcha, Danny," Valerie said, grinning. She obediently headed upstairs to bring the new girl down for the meal. She stopped, though, when she heard what sounded more like a walkie talkie then a cell phone coming from the bathroom.

_"Roger,"_ And unfamiliar voice said, _"Good luck, Raven,"_ All suspicions came back instantly, and Valerie leaned against the wall, waiting only moments for the girl to exit, freezing when she caught sight of Valerie.

"I think you owe me an explanation," She said coolly, giving the girl an even look.

_**

* * *

**_

**WoM- _Already in identity trouble on the first day! Ain't I mean? How's Raven getting out of this one? If you wanna know, you'll have to stay tuned and review!_**

**_

* * *

_**

**Thanks to;**

DannysGirlForever

Tetsukon

epobbp

Invader Johnny

noveler00

peppymint

Rei Tamashii

The Wicked Wench of the West

shadowspinner1

Shadow Guardian of the Gate

DarkDragonQueen

animekraze

Stephen King Reincarnated

Firehedgehog

Krystal

Reggie Tuesday

Jaakusan

soaring-bright-flame

Anime Chick009

Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse

Raven's Alter Ego

Samantha-Girl Scout

Erinyes Star

Crisis Haylo

_**

* * *

**_

Questions;

**_I've decided to stop answering questions in my stories. Nt because of lame rule, but because so many people are complaning about it that I've decided they're only a hassle. Sorry for anyone who was looking frward to a response. I'll be happy to answer any of your questions if you leave me your e-mail._**

_**

* * *

**_

**Next update;** _December 17th_ **_(This one's the real deal. sorry for any and all confusion.)_**

_**See you then!**_


	5. Clashing

**WoM- _FFFFRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDDDOOOOOOOOOMMMMM! _'dancing her happy dance' _No school 'til the thi-rd! No school 'til the thi-rd! Man, I am SO glad I finally got this break! Here's chapter five, enjoy!_**

* * *

"_I once had a rose named after me and I was very flattered. But I was not pleased to read the description in the catalogue: "No good in a bed, but fine up against a wall.""_

_**-Eleanor Roosevelt**_

* * *

_Skulker groaned as he opened his eyes, a throbbing headache pounding at his temples. Someone had taken him out of his armor, a fact that irritated him almost as much as the fact that someone had captured him._

_"See? He's getting up! Told you he was still alive!"_

_"He's a ghost, you nincompoop!"_

_"…Oh…" Skulker glared at the bickering vultures in annoyance._

_"Plasmius sent YOU to find me?" He asked, seriously reconsidering his terms of employment. There Had to be other ghosts out there looking for an experienced hunter…_

_"Before the Haunters grabbed us," one of the vultures told him, nodding._

_"You ought to be grateful for our company!" His companion said. Skulker sighed._

_"Where's the whelp when you need him…?" He grumbled to himself._

_"That's what we want to know," a feminine voice said from the shadows. The three ghosts turned to see a girl smirking at them as she leaned against a filing cabinet._

_"Are you a member of the Haunters?" Skulker asked coldly. The girl ignored the question._

_"We scanned your memories, and found some very interesting things about your little friend, Phantom," The girl told them, "Unfortunately, it can't tell us everything we need to know before making out move, so we need you,"_

_"And if we refuse?" Skulker demanded. He didn't like Danny, but he'd be damned if he let someone else catch the prize he's been eyeing for a good long time._

_This didn't seem to bother the girl though. Quite the contrary, instead of getting mad, her pleasant smile widened into a rather sadistic grin._

_"Want to find out how many of the rumors are true?" She asked in a soft, playful tone._

"Well? What are we gonna do now?" Ember scowled as she asked the question on everyone's minds.

"Calm yourself, girl," walker snapped, "The Hauntersare just a rumor! We've got nothin' to worry about…"

"forty-eight ghosts don't just vanish into thin air, Walker!" Bertrand said.

"Actually, they do," Youngblood pointed out.

"Keep quiet, kid!" Spectra snapped at him, "How about letting everyone over three feet tall handle this?"

"Yeah!" Johnny agreed, "So butt off and find a babysitter!"

"I can look after myself just fine!" Youngblood insisted angrily, "And you're not the boss of me, Loser!"

"What'd you just-!"

"EVERYBODY SHUT UP!" Ember yelled, successfully silencing the others, "Thank you. Now, we need a course of action. If the Haunters _have_ regrouped-!"

"Who died and made you the boss?" Kitty interrupted.

"You got an idea?" Ember asked her coldly. Kitty scowled. "Well? Anybody?" Sullen looks all around, but no one offered anything. "Then, as I was saying, if the Haunters have regrouped, then they're probably resorting back to their old pattern."

"Research; Isolate; Capture; Examine; and Destroy," Sparta recited grimly.

"Since the abductions have been pretty random so far, I'm guessing they're still in research." Bullet added.

"Right, so we need to get a step ahead of them," Ember nodded, "They're under new management now, so whoever it is probably wants to prove themselves on someone big. Someone powerful and unique enough that they can really raise some eyebrows in the human world and scare all the ghosts into not trying anything funny."

"Question now is who…" Bertrand sighed, frowning thoughtfully. The answer seemed to hit everyone at once.

"PHANTOM!"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 5; Clashing_

* * *

"Well?"

_'I'm gonna kill the others when I get back,'_ Raven promised herself silently, meeting Valerie's glare with one of her own.

"Do you always listen in on private conversations?" the Titan asked coldly. She was worried. She had no idea how much Valerie had overheard, or what she was gonna tell the Fentons.

"I do when my friend and his family are at risk," Valerie snapped back, "I don't know you, I don't like you and I know you're up to something. You might be in the clear with Danny now, but on incriminating word from me and your little game ends in a heartbeat."

"How much did you hear?" Raven asked, scowling.

"Why?" Valerie shot back, "Did you say something you didn't want others to know?" Raven glared at her. "What was with the Raven thing, anyways? Was that a code name or something?" Valerie's eyes narrowed. Danny's dad had told her they'd had trouble with the government before…

"What?" Raven paled.

"Raven. It's what the guy you were talking to called you, right?" Guy? As in singular? Raven relaxed slightly. She couldn't have overheard too much if she only caught Robin's voice. There was a chance Raven could still save this…

"It's my name, remember?" Raven said smoothly, "He was calling me by my full name, Rae Venn," Valerie blinked, made the connection, then blushed.

"Oh." She said, feeling very foolish, "I thought…" Her blushed faded when she caught Raven's smirk, and she glared at the pale sorceress, "You know what? I don't have to explain myself to you!" Valerie turned, flipping her hair out of the way as she did so, "Oh, and for your information, I wasn't 'listening in.' Danny sent me up to tell you dinner's done."

And, without another word, Valerie headed downstairs. As soon as she was out of sight, Raven sighed in relief as she put her hand against her heart and leaned against the bathroom door for support.

_'That was way too close,'_ She thought grimly. She made a mental note to tell the others to never call her unless it was a major, **_major_** emergency. And she should lay off the magic for a while, too. Valerie was suspicious enough as it was…

Frowning thoughtfully Raven went downstairs, trying to think of anything else she could do to throw Valerie off her trail.

_'The sooner this mission is done, the better,'_ She said to herself as she entered the Fenton's kitchen.

"I still say I could make a decent meal if you gave me half a chance!" Maddie was saying to Jazz, who looked completely unwavering in her mother's arguments.

"After the hot dog thing? And that one Christmas? And last Thursday night?" Jazz said, "No thanks. I prefer food that doesn't try to eat you back. Besides, we have company, mom, do you really want to try one of your new cooking experiments on Valerie and Danny's new friend?"

"I'll just have to adjust the levels of ectoplasmic energies I-!"

"NO!" Danny and Jazz said as one. Valerie smirked at them in amusement. It faded when she saw Raven, though, in favor of a pointed glare. Danny saw this, too, and turned to grin at the girl.

"Hey, Rae," He said, "Would your parents mind if you stay for dinner?"

"I don't think so…" Raven said honestly enough, "But I really should be getting home."

"Oh, come on!" Maddie said in a friendly tone, apparently forgetting her argument from not three seconds ago, "The more the merrier, right?" Raven doubted Valerie shared the sentiment, from the way the girl's glower darken.

_'Then again, why should she stop me from being able to get this mission done faster?'_ Raven thought suddenly, _'A few questions for the Fentons, listen into a few conversations at school, fight a few ghosts and I'll be back in Titans Tower in no time.'_

"Well, if you insist…" Raven sat, trying some of the meal for herself. She blinked in surprise.

"…This is good…" She said to Danny. The blue eyed boy grinned back.

"Thanks," he said, "It's really nothing special, though. After all, almost anyone can learn to cook…" all the other occupants of the table turned red at that, Raven included as she remembered her own terrible cooking experience.

"So Rae," Jazz said, hell bound on having a normal dinnertime conversation for once in her life. "Do you like Amity Park so far?"

"Actually, I was expecting a little more excitement," Raven admitted.

"Stick around for another two hours or so," Danny said dryly. "You'll have all the excitement you can handle,"

Raven wanted very badly to doubt that, but Amity Park had already proven her wrong on far too many counts. Besides, as far as high school drama went, she was sick of that before second period.

'And growing more sick by the second,' Raven added mentally. Danny gave a sharp gasp suddenly, drawing the attention to him. Raven felt something prickle her senses a little bit, but it was so minor that she paid it no mind.

"You okay?" She asked Danny, an eyebrow kicking up.

"Fine," Danny said, standing, "I'm just full now. I'd better get started on Lancer's book report, too…"

"Huh?" Jazz looked confused for a moment before realization dawned on her. "Oh!" She laughed nervously, "Yeah, Danny, better start on that project!"

"I'll see you two at school tomorrow," Danny said, smiling as Valerie and Raven before disappearing upstairs.

"Anyways," Maddie said, unfazed by her son's quick exit, "Are you coming to the Camp Out this weekend, Valerie?"

"Yes, Mrs. Fenton," Valerie responded at once, smiling, "I can't wait, either!" Jack beamed at her while Jazz frowned into her plate. Raven's eyebrow kicked up.

"What Camp Out?" She asked. Jazz groaned at the question while Jack's grin widened.

"The Annual Ghost Hunter Family Three Day Camp Out!" He announced proudly, "Reserved out place last year! The two of us, plus four others all get to spend three days of camping out with our fellow ghost hunters!" Jack announced proudly. "Danny and Jazz are coming, and so's Valerie,"

"But we still have one spot left…" Maddie said, frowning.

"We could invite V-man," Jack suggested.

"I don't think that's a good idea…" Jazz said quickly, paling slightly.

"Besides, I'm sure Vlad already has an invite," Maddie added, sighing thoughtfully.

"What about your father?" Jack asked Valerie. She shook her head.

"Sorry, Mr. Fenton, he has work," She said.

"Well…" Mrs. Fenton sighed, "I can't think of anyone else who'd want to go…"

"But spots are $150 a piece!" Jack whined, "Completely non-refundable!" Raven frowned.

"I'll go," She said, drawing the attention to her.

"You will?" Jazz asked, surprised. Raven shrugged.

"It's not like I have anything better to do," She reminded Jazz.

"Great!" Jack bellowed, grinning, "It's nice to see kids getting into ghost hunting!"

"Now Jack," Maddie frowned severely at him, then she turned to Raven, "We'll be happy to have you along, sweetie Can you ask your parents about it tonight and tell Danny at school tomorrow?"

"Yes, Mrs. Fenton," Raven responded.

She didn't have to ask her parents, but it would probably be a good idea to clear things with the mayor and Mrs. Ishiyama before she took off anywhere. Now that that was all settled, she could take the time to notice Valerie's glower of pure fury.

'Oops,' She thought, belatedly realizing that the girl would be coming along. She couldn't dwell on this long, however, since her Communicator began to ring again.

"You're sure popular tonight," Jazz said, amused.

"Excuse me," Raven sighed, standing up and dragging her bag out of the kitchen. She shot Valerie a warning look as she left, and the girl glared back, unfazed. As soon as she was back in the upstairs bathroom, she turned her communicator on and glared into it. "This had better be good," She didn't appreciate nearly having her cover blown twice in one night.

_"Thank goodness you picked up, Raven,"_ Mrs. Ishiyama said in relief, in the background you could hear blasts going off, _"There's a ghost attacking at Casper High right now! Phantom's here as well. You need to get down here and stop them before the school's torn apart! **THAT'S AN ANTIQUE!**"_ Raven's eyebrow kicked up, and she assumed this comment had something to do with the breaking glass sound she'd just barely caught.

"On my way," The Sorceress responded. Turning her communicator off, Raven pocketed it and headed out the door, Thankful that _this_ time she didn't have an audience waiting to grill her.

She came back downstairs, and found Jazz and Maddie clearing the table, still arguing over Maddie's culinary rights as Jack went over a list with Valerie of what she'd need for the trip.

"Sorry to eat and run," Raven said, "But something came up,"

"We understand," Maddie said smiling, "It's still your first day in Amity, of course there's gonna be some problems until you settle in…"

"Want me to make you a list, too?" Jack asked, "Danny can give it to you tomorrow!"

"Thanks, Mr. Fenton," Raven said, relieved the Fentons were so compliant.

"Bye, Rae!" Maddie smiled, "And feel free to come back whenever you want. Our door's always open!"

"Almost literally." Jazz said dryly, sharing a smirk with Valerie.

"I should probably go, too, Mr. And Mrs. Fenton," Valerie said as she stood. "Thanks for having me over,"

"Any time, dear!" Maddie said sweetly. Raven frowned, but ignored Valerie the best she could as the two walked towards the door.

"Hey, Rachel!" Raven almost didn't respond to the name before she remembered to stop, turning to meet Valerie's glare with a sour look of her own.

"What?" She asked impatiently.

"Just wanted you to know that I'm watching you," Valerie smirked coldly, "And when I find out you're up to something, don't expect mercy," And, before Raven could protest, Valerie turned and started away.

_'So stubborn…'_ Raven thought, annoyed. Still, on some level she had to admire the girl's determination. It was rare to find girls with so much courage nowadays…

Sighing, Raven turned and started for the alley, a black aura surrounding her as she altered to her fighting outfit as she went…

* * *

"Stupid Cyclops…" Danny scowled as he flew after the ghost, straining himself to go top speed.

As if overhearing him, the monster in front of the boy roared angrily, shooting a beam of ecto-energy out of his eye.

"Whoa!" Danny dodged, cringing as the wind from the blast mussed his hair. "Great, stupid, strong AND fast…" The halfa scowled, "I can never get a break, can I?" Sighing, the ghost-boy shook off his self-pity, flying off again as the ghost who seemed to be hell bound on making his recent life miserable started away as well.

The halfa groaned when his school came into view, especially when the ghost he was chasing kept heading straight for it.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" He complained, "What is it about the school that attracts every ghost in the continent?" Danny sped up, hoping to catch the ghost before he added to the damage caused to the school.

No such luck, though. The Cyclops out sped him easily, and fazed into the school from the wall that separated the gym from the outside. Danny followed, pausing in midair when the ghost disappeared from his sight.

"Hey, Where'd he-?"

_**'WHAM!'**_

_'Stupid, stupid Danny!'_ The ghost-boy scowled as he shook the sting in his cheek away. _'You should know by now that whenever you can't see them, they're behind you…'_ Danny wasted no more time chastising himself, though, instead taking advantage of the Cyclops' lack of security to nail him with a powerful ecto-blast.

The ghost went flying through wall after wall, and Danny followed at his heels to avoid being caught by the same trick twice. Finally, the Cyclops lost concentration and became tangible again.

In Mrs. Ishiyama's office.

Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but Mrs. Ishiyama had apparently stayed late tonight, and screamed when the giant ogre fell onto her desk, crushing it.

"Now, are you gonna come quietly, One-Eye?" Danny demanded, "Or is this gonna be painful?"

The halfa's response was another blast he just barely dodged, the heat from this one brushing his cheek in how close it came. Then, with a furious growl, the Cyclops leapt up, tackling Danny into a bookshelf, which also got crushed.

The halfa scowled as he went intangible to escape the monster's grasp, not noticing the way his principal dived for her phone instead of the Fenton Ghost Alarms.

He turned tangible again just above his opponent, hitting him with a blast of energy that pinned him to the floor. In the background, he faintly heard Mrs. Ishiyama talking, but paid her no mind.

The Cyclops threw off an aura charge that sent the half ghost reeling, then telepathically lifted several nearby items, which all glowed green. He threw one at Danny, a rather ugly looking desk lamp. Danny instinctively turned intangible, and the lamp crashed against the wall.

_"**THAT'S AN ANTIQUE!**"_ Mrs. Ishiyama yelled.

"Take it up with the giant one eyed ogre over there!" Danny shot back. Said ogre took advantage of Danny's momentary distraction to send them both through the wall behind the halfa. _"Do you **ever** give it a rest?"_

Danny was starting to feel drained now, and was running out of ideas. Luckily, The Cyclops didn't seem to be fairing any better.

_'If only I could confuse him a bit…'_ Danny frowned. That's when an idea came to him.

Grinning, the halfa shot a small beam of energy into the other ghost's eye, making him roar in anger and pain.

"Catch me if you can, One-eye!" The snowy-haired boy yelled, taking off. The monster growled before taking flight as well, too furious to realize he was being led right to a trap.

Danny grinned as he maneuvered his way through the halls. It seemed a full year of avoiding Lancer and finding places to go ghost had finally paid off, as he now knew the school like the back of his hand. That was including the Teacher's Lounge, too.

The Cyclops out-sized Danny, and out-sped him, so maybe it was time to out-think him…

Coming to a stop in the storage room he was looking for, Danny turned invisible, waiting for his opponent to enter. He didn't wait long, and the ghost was plenty mad when he did come into the room. That didn't bother Danny though. Quite the contrary, it made things easier…

Danny inhaled loudly and let out a single ghostly wail. It wasn't powerful enough to do anything more then shake the room, but it was plenty powerful enough for what Danny wanted to accomplish.

Sure enough, over twenty different Flour sack babies all began to wail as one, making the Cyclops turn every which way in confusion before he put his hands on his head in an attempt to drown out the noise.

"Bye-bye!" Danny said happily, sucking the Cyclops into the swirling blue vortex of the Fenton Thermos. He grinned when he capped it, knowing that he wasn't going to miss this particular ghost any time soon.

_**"Danny? You there?"**_

"Yeah, I'm here," Danny answered his sister, "Just caught the Cyclops."

**_"What?"_** Jazz yelled, **_"Danny, I can't hear you over that… is that crying? Danny, where the heck are you?" _**The halfa sighed and used his telepathy to turn off all the babies, once again wishing he'd learned the power sooner.

"I said I just caught the Cyclops," Danny repeated, "And I'm at the school."

_"What got broken this time?"_ Jazz asked in dry humor.

"Mrs. Ishiyama's office," Danny answered.

_"Ouch…"_

"Well, at least she doesn't know it's me…" Danny smiled, "And I've got the ghost, too. All and all, I'd say this was a pretty good-!" Danny saw the blast coming out of the corner of his eye, and only just dodged it.

He turned sharply to meet the violet eyed glare of a strange girl around his age in a hooded blue cloak. Shadowed obscured the top part of her face, and all the could see from the bottom half was that she was very pale. Paler then Sam, even.

"Hello, Ghost-boy," She said in a cool, wary tone that sounded vaguely familiar. Danny stiffened.

_"Danny? **Danny**?"_

"I'm gonna have to call you back…" Danny said to his sister, never taking his eyes off the girl in front of him.

_'…Not good…'_

* * *

**WoM- _Not good indeed… How will our heroes react to one another? Stay tuned to see!_ 'cackles demonically.'**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Anime Chick009

epobbp

Invader Johnny

Unit 1860

conan98002

Firehedgehog

lilnovelist

Ant Crown

phantomgirl07

Rosadina formerly Tima

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

Tetsukon

enigmatic penguin

IwuvMyKenshyPoo

I Brake For Ghosts

Crisis Haylo

My Eternal Facade

DannysGirlForever

Desighnergirl123

The Halfa Wannabe

Firefury

Inumaru12

* * *

**Next update;** _December 24th_

_**See you then!**_


	6. Ghosts Who Aren't Ghosts

**WoM- _Yo! I'm in a good mood now. Of course, how could I not be, considering it's Christmas Eve? _'grins happily' _I'll make this quick, since I've got places to go and people to see. H, and no update next week. I'm on vacation with my dad, no computers _'Shivers at the thought' _If that's not enough, I'm a vegetarian and my family in Kentucky lives off of meat._ 'Cringes' _Ah, well, Merry Early Christmas!_**

**

* * *

**

"_Doctor to patient: I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you are not a hypochondriac."_

_**-Unknown**_

**

* * *

**

_"You're sure that's everything?" Vlad pressed, watching the last of his things get loaded into the back of the limo._

_"Yes, sir," His secretary said, "Everything you need to vacation for a good long while,"_

_"Thank you, Gloria. And if anyone calls for me…"_

_"You're currently unreachable," Gloria finished._

_"Good girl. I'll see you when my personal business is done," Vlad assured her, climbing into his limo and closing the door._

_"We'll be waiting, Master Plasmius," Gloria said with a short bow as Vlad rolled up his window._

_Vlad sighed as he closed his eyes as the car started up, rolling down the path to the main road. After a small mental debate, the multi-billionaire picked up his car phone, dialing a familiar number._

"FentonWorks, Jazz Fenton speaking," _A young woman on the other end answered._ "My parent's can't come to the phone right now, so if this is for them-"

_"Hello, Jasmine," Vlad said smoothly. He could practically hear the girl stiffen._

_"Vlad Masters?" She said incredulously. Then, a sharp suspicion coloring her tone, she added, _"Why are _you_ calling?"

_"A man can't call to check up on his old college chum?" Vlad asked innocently._

"Mom and Dad made a new invention that's supposed to work on a ghost over the phone. Care to be it's first trial subject?" _Vlad couldn't stop his flinch._

_"I need to speak to Daniel," He said._

"And you expect me to just hand him the phone and say _'oh, it's the guy who wants to kill dad, marry mom and make you evil!'_?" _The half-ghost frowned, wondering why the Fenton siblings seemed to take such pleasure in irritating him._

_"Actually, it's serious." Vlad said smoothly, "His life may be at risk even," There was a long pause at the other end, and Vlad wondered it the girl hung up._

"And it's big enough that _you _want to warn him?" _She asked, her voice strained. Vlad could tell she was probably several shades paler._

_"Let's just say this is something I wouldn't wish upon you Father's ghost, much less young Daniel," Vlad said grimly._

"He… He's not here." _Jazz said hesitantly,_ "He was out ghost hunting and something attacked him. He said he'd call back later." _Vlad stiffened._

_"Did he tell you if his attacker was ghost or human?" he demanded._

"He didn't say…" _Vlad sighed._

_"If he returns, tell him to call me," Vlad ordered, "I don't want the Haunters to catch him off guard."_

"The Haunters?"

_"I'll explain the rest to Daniel when he calls me," Vlad said firmly. "_IF_ he calls me, that is…" and without another word, Vlad hung up with a tired sigh. _

_Troublesome or not, he couldn't have the Haunters getting their hands on his potential apprentice. Besides, it would be bad tastes to allow Daniel to suffer such torture and pain without warning him what he was in store for._

_He frowned out the window, puzzled when he realized he didn't recognize the landmarks._

_"Driver, are we taking a different route?" He asked over the intercom. There was no response. "Driver? What's going on? Answer me!" And, before Vlad could do or say anything else, a glowing green ghost shield surrounded his limo, trapping him inside._

"Everything's fine, Vlad Plasmius," _An unfamiliar voice told him,_ "Just sit back and enjoy the ride…"

"Mr. Masters? _Mr. Masters?_ _MR. MASTERS?"_ Jazz paled as she replaced the receiver with trembling hands.

_'Okay, that's not a good sign…' _she thought shakily. After a glance toward the basement assured her that Jack and Maddie were still occupied, Jazz rushed up to her room and pulled out her Emergency Ghost Hunting Supplies, which consisted of a Fenton Peeler, A spare Thermos and an ecto-gun.

After activating the Fenton Peeler and stashing the rest in her bag, Jazz headed out. Halfway out the door she remembered that there was a chance that it wasn't a ghost she was dealing with, and after careful consideration she picked up one last weapon before shooting towards the Specter Speeder.

_'I'm coming, little brother!'_

**

* * *

**

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 6; Ghosts who aren't Ghosts_

**

* * *

**

"Who are you in contact with?" Raven demanded, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

_'Strange… his energy patterns are different from most ghosts… and MUCH stronger then someone who's only been dead for a year should have,'_

"Right now? No one," Danny Phantom replied, eyeing her warily. "Who are you? And why are you after me?"

"What makes you so sure it's you I'm after?" Raven asked, trying to avoid his first question.

_'The less he knows, the better…'_

"Oh yeah, you're right," Phantom said sardonically. "You really look like the kind of girl who likes to hang out at schools after hour for no reason…" Raven felt her cheeks heat up at that.

"You know, the sarcasm _reeeally_ isn't necessary," Raven told him dryly.

"Neither was trying to blast my head off," Raven's eyebrow kicked up, unseen under her hood.

"You really like to argue, don't you?" She observed out loud.

"Keeps me occupied during battle," Phantom shrugged, completely shameless in his honesty. "You?"

"I prefer a silent fight," Raven said, "I'm not a chatty person."

"It really shows," Phantom said, amused.

"Anyone ever tell you you're an annoyance?" Raven asked.

"Would it surprise you if I say I've heard it once or twice?" Raven rolled her eyes before she remembered why she was really here.

"Why are you here?" She demanded.

"You mean 'here' as in Casper High School, or 'here' as in still walking this earth?"

"Both," Raven answered.

"Well then, number one is that I was catching an escaped ghost that was really giving me a headache," Danny responded, Shaking the Thermos still in his hands. The Ogre growled in an angry protest to being manhandled in such a way, proving Danny's point. "And number two is that is wasn't my time to go,"

"Obviously someone disagreed with you if you're dead," Raven said dryly. Danny's grin only widened.

"See, funny story there…" Sensing that the ghost was playing with her now, Raven glared.

"I don't have time for games," She said shortly, "State your true business now," Danny sighed.

"I want to protect them," He explained, motioning a hand out the window to the city that was now lit up in the coming night. "It's my responsibility, and nothing's gonna stop me." Danny cocked an eyebrow. "And you? You CAN'T be another ghost hunter. Every ghost hunter I've ever met shoots first and asks questions later, if ever…" Raven sighed and rolled her eyes, relaxing her stance slightly.

Though she hadn't probed his mind, Raven had a feeling the boy was telling her the truth. Besides, there was no way someone this annoyingly impish and sarcastic could be evil. She'd have to reserve her final judgment until she knew him a little better, but all in all, she'd say he was trustworthy.

"No," She acknowledged. "I'm not," And, with a sweep of her cloak, Raven turned and started away.

"Hey, now that's just not fair!" Danny complained, flying after her, "I answer your questions and you give me a bunch of vague bull and walk away? Come on!" Raven couldn't suppress a smile at the sheer childishness of this ghost, "At least tell me your name…"

Raven hesitated for a moment, turning to smirk at him.

"You're the superhero in this town, you figure it out,"

* * *

Jazz scowled at the road in front of her impatiently, anxious to get to Danny before something happened to him. Her conversation with Vlad left her edgy, and it showed as she tapped the steering wheel restlessly as she drove, sometimes reaching for her weapons to reassure herself they were still there. 

She was almost to the school when she noticed an eerie green glow coming from a nearby abandoned alley that pretty much screamed 'paranormal activity' through a megaphone.

The eldest of the Fenton children hesitated only momentarily before parking the Specter Speeder and jumping out of the vehicle, her arsenal in tow.

_'Please be Danny, Please be Danny, Please be Danny…'_ She chanted in her head, her heart pounding as she crept slowly and silently into the alleyway.

No such luck, though. Instead of her brother, Jazz found a strange figure in a black hood, speaking to someone in a glowing green… _something_ that Jazz couldn't see.

**"Well?"**

"Everything's been set up, just as you ordered. We're ready to go on schedule, Boss." The cloaked figure, decidedly male, answered the demonic voice coming from the glowing green… _thing._

**"Excellent… and the elder half ghost?"**

"He's being taken to the secure location as we speak, sir." The man answered as Jazz started.

_'Mr. Masters?'_ She thought, frowning. What was going on here? He'd called her from his car phone not half an hour ago…

**"Make sure to keep him from the younger half ghost after we've captured him. We wouldn't want them planning anything with how much power they have between them,"**

_"Sure thing, Boss," The man replied, unaware of the chill of horror now running through his unknown listener. "What about the kid's family? Won't they suspect something if he just goes missing?"_

**"The Fentons will be of no consequence. Make it appear that the boy ran from home, or better yet was captured by vengeful ghosts. That way, we can return what is left of the body when all is said and done, and possibly convince them to join our scientists."**

That order filled Jazz with blind rage. How dare they! Who were these people to think they could ruin her family's life, and even go as far as to steal Danny's? Jazz retracted The Fenton Peeler and picked up the only Fenton-made weapon suitable for fighting off human menaces…

"Jazz?"

_"KYAAAAAAAAA!"_ Jazz screamed, swinging around on instinct and attacking. Her assault went through the person easily, doing absolutely no damage. When Jazz began to calm down, she realized exactly who had surprised her so badly, "Danny?"

"What are you doing out?" Her little brother asked, puzzled. His eyebrow kicked up when he saw the weapon in her hands, "And why are you attacking me with the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick?" Jazz blushed for a moment before remembering the conversation she'd just overheard.

"Danny! Hide!" Jazz hissed, grabbing her brother and pushing him to the cement, ignoring his yelp of protest. Jazz then fell t the cement next to her brother, listening hard for the sounds of footfall and an exclamation of discovery…

…which never came.

Blinking the girl stood, glancing back over to where the man and the green glow had been to find an empty alley littered with forgotten newspapers and other various junk.

"But… where did they- They were just…" Jazz gaped, dangerously close to babbling.

"You okay, Jazz?" Danny asked in concern.

"Didn't you see the glow?" Jazz asked him, "There was a glow! And that man… and Mr. Masters!"

"Plasmius was here?" Danny asked, alarmed, "Where? When?"

"No, Mr. Masters wasn't here but they were talking about him!" Jazz explained, "And you! They said they were going to kill you, Danny! And Mr. Masters did call earlier to tell me that you were in danger!"

"When am I _not_ in danger?" Danny asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but this time it's serious enough that VLAD wanted you to get to safety!" Jazz said, worry clear on her face, "Danny, who were you fighting when you cut me off? Was it a ghost?"

"No," Danny frowned. "Not a ghost, but she wasn't normal, either. She had some sort of power, almost like ectoplasm but it gave me a different kind of chill then ghost energies do. Still it was definitely spiritually-based magic…" If Jazz wasn't so worried, she'd admire how knowledgeable her little brother sounded on this subject, odd as it was.

"Don't go near her again, Danny," Jazz said sharply, "she may be the one Vlad was talking about, or at the very least in league with them,"

"Come on, Jazz, she didn't seem that bad to me," Danny scoffed.

"Neither did Mr. Masters at firstnow, did he?" The red head said shrewdly. Danny glowered at her for that one, finding he couldn't actually deny it.

"What, you don't think I've learned how to tell good energies from bad ones?" He said sourly.

"Have you ever actually _fought _anyone with good energies?" Jazz countered. Then she sighed, "Look, I'm not questioning your judgment, Danny, God knows you know more about all this ghost stuff and energies then I do, I'm just worried that this time you might be up against something you DON'T know," Rather then getting angry that she was meddling again like Jazz expected, Danny smiled.

"Well then," He said, the impish shine in his eyes alerting Jazz that her brother was plotting yet again. "I guess there's only one thing to do…"

* * *

"You're sure?" Mrs. Ishiyama pressed. Raven shrugged. 

"He didn't look evil, he didn't sound evil and he didn't feel evil," She said, brushing violet locks behind her ear, "So as far as my first impression goes, he's not evil," Raven's lips pursed as she thought of Terra, and she added, "Of course, my methods aren't infallible, so I'll stick around for a bit longer before I finalize anything."

"But he destroyed my lamp!" Mrs. Ishiyama wailed.

"And probably saved your life," Raven told her, a little annoyed. "Everything breaks, Everything fades away, but the important thing is that you're alive to enjoy them while they can bring you joy," Mrs. Ishiyama sighed.

"You have wisdom beyond your years, young lady," She said in a tired tone. Raven blushed.

"The monks on Azarath were kind when they taught me," She explained, "And their teachings stayed with me when I left everything else behind and came to earth,"

"That is the mark of a true educator," Mrs. Ishiyama noted. Raven smiled.

"Of course," She added, "I've learned just as much on my own here on earth, among my friends in Titan's Tower,"

"That is the mark of a true friend," Mrs. Ishiyama smiled back.

"Speaking of which, I'd better go," Raven said, turning to leave, "I promised to call them as soon as I got back to the apartment where I'm staying."

"Yes," Mrs. Ishiyama sighed, "Besides, I doubt you want to fall asleep during Homeroom now, would you?" Raven managed to keep most of her irritation off her face.

_'Teachers…' _she thought dryly as she flew over the darkened town, now lit only by the lights from streetlamps and widows with lighted rooms, _'…How can anyone be expected to maintain a passing grade in six separate classes and save the world on a fairly daily basis?'_

The thought alone made the sorceress shudder violently.

The short flight home was quiet and uneventful, and Raven landed in a darkened alley to put her disguise back on. She was just about done, with only the wig left when a sharp gasp was heard behind her.

Wheeling around, the girl came face to face with Melissa, the silent girlfriend of Danny's friend from school. Her green eyes were wide in shock, and there was no mistaking that she'd seen enough that Raven wouldn't be able to smooth talk her way out of this one.

A million and one curses passed through Raven's head as she tried to think of something to tell the girl, most of them overheard during Beastboy and Cyborg's video game matches.

"Uhh…" Raven said, still trying to think.

That's when she saw the ghost.

"GET DOWN!" Raven yelled to the girl, throwing out a bolt of magic to stop the heavy trashcan the spectral creature was trying to throw at the stunned Melissa. The shy girl complied quickly, hiding behind a garbage in with her hands over her head, much in the same way teachers made students sit during tornado drills.

Raven prepared herself for a fight, but instead of throwing another blow the ghost just laughed and flew away before Raven could stop him.

"Great…" The sorceress sighed. She turned back to Melissa, knowing there was no way to salvage this. Sure enough, the girl was giving her the wide eyed look again.

"Who are you?" She asked, so softly Raven just barely caught it. Those were the first words the girl had said to her, and the last question Raven wanted to answer.

"I guess I have some explaining to do…" She said, cringing.

_'This night just gets better and better…'_

**

* * *

**

**WoM- _I honestly didn't mean to bring Melissa in like that…_ 'smiles guiltily,' _Don't you hate it when stories take on a life of their own and you just get pulled along for the ride? Ah, well, that's Chapter six for you, hoped you enjoyed it! And Valerie fans, don't fret, she'll be back next chapter with a vengeance._**

**

* * *

Thanks to; **

lilnovelist

Ant Crown

Reggie Tuesday

enigmatic penguin

Invader Johnny

The Halfa Wannabe

Inviso-Bill

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

Unit 1860

Samantha-Girl Scout

Iona

I Brake For Ghosts

Tetsukon

My Eternal Facade

Anime Chick009

conan98002

epobbp

Firehedgehog

DannysGirlForever

IwuvMyKenshyPoo

Seeker Carter

Petitio Principii

shadowspinner1

Shiva the Sarcastic

**

* * *

**

**Next update;** _January 6th_

_**See you then!**_


	7. This Means War!

**WoM- _You know, the whole thing about being the only vegetarian in the hills? It wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be… it was worse._ 'makes face' _My dad didn't care that I got a belly button ring, but he flipped when he found out I don't eat meat. Ah, well. Here's chapter seven, enjoy!_**

* * *

"The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact than a drunken man is happier than a sober one."

_**-William Shakespeare**_

* * *

_"Keep moving… And no funny stuff, freak!" Plasmius narrowed his eyes, memorizing the face of the youth who was herding him into his cell. The young fool would not get away with such an insult, Vlad would make sure of that._

_As the door slid shut and a strange energy force field turned on, Vlad looked around the cell. It was fairly large, about the size of his office, and clean. The walls, floor and ceiling were all pure white, which stung at the halfa's eyes._

_To his left was an open door, which Vlad saw led to some kind of bathroom, where this rooms color scheme also ran rampant. From what he could see there was a sink, a shower and a toilet. No mirrors or any other glass objects the ghost could use as a weapon._

_Against the opposite wall was a small cot, with clean white bed sheets. A small, almost flat pillow sat above the smooth sheets as one end, as white as anything else in the room. In fact, the only thing that wasn't white was the large black screen to his right._

_Sighing grimly, the halfa turned to study his guards. They both had their backs to him, both wearing some sort of protective armor Vlad didn't recognize. The armor was mainly white, but there were some blacks and grays worked in here and there too, giving it a very mechanical look._

_No doubt both the armor and the force field were designed specifically for someone with his powers, and there were probably more guards he couldn't see, and most likely even some cameras as well._

_If it were anyone but the Haunters, Vlad would be quite smug about all these preparations being made just for him._

'Daniel,' _He thought, frowning, _'They'll be after Daniel, too. Hopefully his sister warned him in time. The boy's intelligent enough to know something's wrong before they can take him, and if anyone has the proper combination of power, intelligence and sheer dumb luck needed to defeat the Haunters, it's Daniel,'

_He just hoped his judgment was as good as he thought…_

"Didn't I tell you to keep your crap on your side of the room?" Sam sighed and glared irritably at the girl standing in front of her, hands at her hips.

"This IS my side of the room," She reminded the girl.

"Your stupid photo album!" The girl exclaimed, brandishing the book angrily. "I found it next to my Dresser!" And, with a cross huff, the girl threw the book across the room, letting loose photos scatter everywhere before she turned on her heels and left, slamming the door behind her. Sam's eyes widened as she took in the mess.

"My pictures!" She yelled, jumping up. On the other side of the room, her other roommate smiled up from her assignment sympathetically.

"Marie's been in a bad mood lately," She said, "Her ex-boyfriend just started seeing someone else." Sam's lips pursed.

"Marie's ALWAYS in a bad mood." She said coolly, "And don't make excuses for her, Anna, I don't buy them for a second!" Anna winced slightly, looking down guiltily.

Just then, her eye caught a picture that's floated all the way to her side of the room when Marie had thrown the book, landing upside down just two feet from Anna curious, Anna picked it up.

It showed a boy around her age, with hair as white as snow who was wearing a black and gray Hazmat suit. His vivid green eyes were narrowed in determination, and his fists were out in front of him as he literally flew through the air. The weirdest thing, though, was the fact that he didn't have legs, but rather a long black trail of semi-transparent energy where his legs should've been.

"Is this Danny Phantom?" Anna asked Sam, looking up from the picture. Sam's head jerked up at the name, her eyes widening at the sight of the picture in Anna's hands.

"Gimme that!" She said, grabbing the picture up, much to her roommates alarm. Anna frowned in confusion as a blushing Sam stuffed the picture with the rest she'd collected, shutting the book to hide them from view.

"I was just asking," Anna said, giving Sam an accusing glare. Sam sighed.

"…Well… Yeah. That was Danny Phantom, alright?" She frowned at Anna, "How did you know about him anyways?" Anna rolled her eyes.

"I told you before that one of my brothers is an occult maniac," She reminded Sam dryly. "If he could, he'd worship the ground Phantom walked on. How do you know about him?"

"I lived in Amity Park before I came here," Sam said.

"Really?" Anna brightened, "And you know him?"

"Everyone in Amity knows Phantom," Sam said dryly.

"well you obviously know him better then most people of you've got a picture of him." Anna pointed out. Sam blushed again.

"He saved me before, okay?" She said irritably.

"So he really is a hero then?" Anna asked, curiosity shining in her eyes. Sam smiled gently at that.

"Yeah," She said softly, lost in thought, "He's a hero, alright…"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 7; This Means War!_

* * *

"So, you're actually Raven of the Teen Titans?" Melissa asked quietly as Raven finished her explanation. The hands that held her coco were trembling slightly, But Raven couldn't figure out if that was from the attack or just because they were now alone in Raven's apartment.

"Exactly," Raven said, "And you can't tell anyone about it, okay?" Melissa gave Raven a weak smile.

"Don't worry," She advised her pale companion, "Tucker's the only person who ever listens to me, anyways, and I know better then to trust him with something you want to keep secret." Raven frowned slightly at the mention of the boy, who she knew was friends with Danny.

Who was probably one of the last people she wanted to find out about the whole Rae Venn hoax, especially considering his friendship with Valerie…

"Well, keep even quieter about it whenever Danny Fenton is around," She advised the girl. "If he finds out, it could be the end of my mission, considering who his parents are."

"I think you should be more worried about Danny himself then his parents," Melissa said softly. "I don't know why, but he's always struck me as really… powerful," Raven fought a smile of amusement as Melissa shuddered slightly.

"Powerful?" She repeated, "A boy who admits he's been inside his locker more then he's been out?"

"I know it seems silly, but that's the impression I get," Melissa said, her voice losing some conviction as her eyes fixed on Raven's feet. The sorceress sighed.

"I'll keep a closer eye on Danny," She promised. "Honestly, though, it's Valerie that worries me. She's already nearly caught me… and that girl can really hold a grudge."

"Valerie's been full of anger for a long time now," Melissa sighed "Ever since her father lost his job at Axion. Being friends with Danny has gotten rid of a lot of it, but some is still there."

"Yeah, kinda noticed that," Raven said dryly, thinking back to Valerie's cryptic warning.

"Tucker doesn't like her," Melissa admitted softly, "He's always been worried she'd hurt Danny, I think,"

"He's worried about Valerie hurting Danny?" Raven asked, her eyebrow raising at that one. "We are talking about the same Valerie here, right?"

"I couldn't understand it either," Melissa admitted, "I always thought that Danny was the last person Valerie would hurt, but Tucker just won't trust her. Actually, the closer those two get, the more upset he becomes." Raven frowned thoughtfully at that.

"It's probably nothing important," She decided after a while. Melissa's face fell for a moment before she smiled shyly at Raven.

"You're probably right," She agreed with the superhero, standing up, "Well, I should probably get back home. My brother's probably worried by now…"

"Right," Raven sighed.

"I promise I won't say a word to anyone," she repeated quietly before ducking out the door. Raven sighed as the door shut behind the girl. She didn't doubt that for a second, though. Melissa seemed too quiet to allow herself to get into the middle of something that would become the center of so much attention.

With that reassuring though, Raven's eyes narrowed as she turned to address another problem. Taking out her communicator, she opened it and contacted Titan's Tower.

_"Friend Raven!" _Starfire chirped happily when she appeared on the screen, _"Seeing you again brings much joy!"_

"Next person who calls me without a very good reason will spend the next year in the most unpleasant alternate dimension I can find," Raven warned bluntly, narrowing her eyes at her friend accusingly.

_"What happened?"_ Cyborg asked, confused.

"Someone nearly found out who I was," Raven explained with a sigh, "Someone who hates me with every fiber of their being, by the way,"

_"How can they hate you if you've only been there a day?"_ Robin's eyebrow kicked up.

"That doesn't matter," Raven said, not wanting to explain the tenuous fiasco that was her relationship with Valerie. "The point is, you guys are only supposed to call me in **_emergency _**situations." She put emphasis on 'emergency,' giving her changeling friend a pointed glare.

_"Noted,"_ Beastboy said with a weak grin.

_"So how's the ghost hunt going?"_ Cyborg asked, _"You get your man yet?"_

"I met him," Raven sighed, "The problem is, he doesn't seem half bad,"

_"This is bad news, yes?"_ A puzzle Starfire asked, misinterpreting the term. _"If more then half of him is bad, then he becomes a threat, is that not so?"_ Everyone stared at the alien princess for a moment.

_"Ah, that's not what she meant, Star…"_ Cyborg said slowly.

_"Oh!"_ Starfire blushed as she grinned sheepishly, _"Then forgive me for interrupting! And please continue, friend!"_

"At any rate," Raven sighed, "since the ghost doesn't strike me as evil right off the bat, I'm, going to have to stay a little longer. And Valerie's already suspicious enough, so I don't need anything else confirming her reservations."

_"Who's Valerie?"_ Beastboy asked, brightening at the female name. Raven resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"A very untrusting girl with a crush on the very weird son of two very enthusiastic ghost hunters," the sorceress answered. "and she's making my life miserable."

_"Well, it's not like she's anything you've really gotta worry about,"_ Cyborg reminded her, _"You've fought psychotic madmen, evil mutants, demons and space aliens trying to take over the world. After that, getting a high school girl off your case should be a cinch."_

_"Yeah, Rae,"_ Beastboy agreed.

_"You should probably turn in now,"_ Robin said, taking charge as always_, "Call us again tomorrow for another update. And try not to draw too much attention to yourself in school. Titans Tower out."_

"Could've used that advice a little earlier…" Raven sighed as she turned her communicator off and placed it on her nightstand. She absently ran a hand through her violet hair, the wig firmly discarded as soon as she'd entered the house.

Taking her leader's advice, Raven flew into the kitchen and put a pot of water on the stove to boil for her nightly herbal tea. With that taken care of, the girl picked out a change of clothes and flew into the bathroom to shower and change for bed.

She never noticed the cloaked figure outside her bedroom window, which disappeared as soon as her door shut.

* * *

"Busy night?" Danny blinked incoherently, staring at Valerie in a daze. The ghost hunter chuckled. "Don't tell me, you forgot our Economy homework too." Danny groaned.

"Jazz is gonna murder me…" He predicted in a droll tone, slumping against the lockers behind him. Valerie laughed.

"Danny!" Both teens turned at the familiar called, watching with raised eyebrows as Tucker ran over to them, "I need to talk to you, now!"

"Then by all means," Valerie responded, crossing her arms and fixing the boy with a cool gaze.

As much as she liked Danny, she still didn't get along with his remaining friend that well, though in all honesty her relationship with him was better then the one she had with Sam. Before she moved, it'd gotten to the point where a cat fight nearly broke out every time they spoke to one another.

"It's private, okay?" Tucker said, lugging the startled blue eyed boy away. "Guy stuff!" Valerie blinked after their disappearing forms.

"…Guy stuff?" She repeated. Knowing Tucker, she decided that she didn't want to know after all.

Sighing, Valerie figured it was time for her to head to class, since Tucker had kidnapped the only person she ever really talked to. On her way, though, she passed a sight that made her stop with a suspicious frown on her face.

Decked out in a similar outfit that she'd worn the other day, Rae stood in the middle of the hall, working the combination to her locker. At the other end of the hall stood Paulina, Dash, and both of their respective posses.

Dash and Paulina were both smirking at Rae, and the rest of the group was giggling and snickering amongst themselves, also keeping their eyes fixed on the new girl.

_'She can't be dense enough not to think that…?'_ Valerie started. Then she groaned. Who was she kidding? The girl had only been going to high school for a day. There was no way she could've already caught onto the finer points of the way popular kids took their revenge.

With that realized, Valerie looked between the Goth and the populars, genuinely torn. On the one hand, Rae was certainly no friend of hers. But on the other, no self-respecting hero, self-made or not, could ever stand along and just watch when she knew a disaster was about to take place, especially when she could prevent it.

Besides, she still hadn't forgiven or forgotten the way Paulina and Dash both spurred her and kicked her out of the group when they knew she and her father had fallen on hard times.

Her mind made up, Valerie headed towards Rae, and putting a hand over hers right before the new girl opened her locker. Rae jumped and wheeled around to give Valerie a shock and confused look, apparently deep in thought with the girl had interrupted.

"I wouldn't," Valerie said, her eyes flickering over to the popular kids to glare at their disappointed looks. Rae frowned at turned to see what the girl was scowling at.

"What?" She said skeptically, "They couldn't have done anything. They don't know my combination." Valerie rolled her eyes.

"It's a high school locker, not a bank safe." She said, scoffing slightly, "Pick out any one and I can guarantee you I and any other student here can break into it in like three seconds. And that includes self absorbed cheerleaders and muscle-headed jocks. Look, just stand back, okay?" Still not looking convinced, Rae obliged, stepping aside to give the girl room. Valerie carefully lifted the lock and jumped back as the door swung open, not in the mood to take any nasty surprises for someone she didn't even like.

Just in time, too. Almost as soon as the ghost hunter stepped out of the way, a trap in the locker was triggered, flinging three raw eggs clear across the hall to spatter on the lockers opposite Rae's. Raven's gasped sharply when she saw them, and the popular kids groaned in disappointment.

"Thanks a lot, Grey!" Dash called out sarcastically, glaring at Valerie.

"Really, Valerie!" Paulina agreed, "Way to ruin the fun! Come on guys, let's go…"

Valerie scowled as she watched them begin to disperse, anger and a little guilt working it's way into her consciousness. Anger because she couldn't believe how petty and shallow the popular kids were acting…

…And guilt because at one time, she would've been right there with them, eagerly awaiting the 'new geek's' embarrassment. That was the one and only thing she was grateful to the ghost boy for. He showed her that there was a better life to live, better things to work towards.

But she was stronger for that now, and she had nothing to apologize for in her opinion. She made mistakes in the past, but that wasn't her anymore, and it wouldn't be her ever again. And anyone who had a problem with who she was now could just take a hike, because she was the only one who could decide how she thought and acted. And no one, ghost or human, could dictate that for her.

Valerie was drawn from these thoughts when movement caught the corner of her eye and she realized that an angry Rae was going after the popular kid's group in their retreat. Though she didn't notice the way that anything that wasn't nailed down was rattling threateningly, Valerie's eyes widened as her stomach drop to her feet.

_'This can't end well…'_

* * *

Raven was mad.

Beyond mad even. All the careful meditation, all her control, everything she worked so hard for to maintain her powers all flew out the window with those eggs that were clearly meant to humiliate her, a seemingly normal, defenseless girl.

_'How dare they…!'_ She thought, fuming, _'Who do they think they are that they can degrade people like that for their own twisted form of entertainment and revenge for petty rebellion?'_ While the sorceress couldn't figure this out on her own, she fully intended on finding out.

"Hey she called out, making the group turn, apparently startled that she actually had the gall to confront them. Raven didn't concern herself with this, going on the offensive in an immediate, and completely uncharacteristic way.

She slapped Dash as hard as she could.

The boy stumbled back underneath the force of the blow, which started to turn red almost right away. No doubt it would turn into a most embarrassing bruise before the day let out. The rest of the group stared at Raven, jaws slacked.

On some level, Raven herself was surprised at her actions, but she was too consumed by Rage to care. Because before she came along, all these cruel pranks, all the nasty words and mockery, that was all for kids like Danny and Melissa. The kids who either valued whatever peace they could find enough to take the abuse that was given to them in a pacifists view point and the kids who were either too weak or frightened to stand up for themselves against those they saw as strong.

Raven wasn't angry for herself, she was angry for them. And this was one thing she wouldn't back down about, mission or no mission. In her mind, the ghosts were less of a threat to the teenaged population then their own were, the ones who stuffed unpopular boys into their lockers and spread cruel rumors about girls they didn't like.

"Are you psychotic?" Star demanded, gaping at Raven, "Man! What's your deal?"

"As of now, you cowards," Raven said in an icy tone. Paulina's eyes narrowed. "I'm only going to warn you once to leave me alone. Another prank and I won't be so nice," Star laughed.

"And just what can you do to us, huh?" She challenged. Raven just barely kept her powers under control, but the sound of breaking glass from the girl's bathroom they stood next to did reach her ears, making most of the kids jump.

"Care to find out?" She asked softly. To her surprise, Paulina smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile though it was cruel, teasing.

The thing that shocked her more, though, was when the popular girl grabbed her and pushed her into the bathroom, following at a leisurely pace. Behind her, Star trotted in like a dog following her master, gazing around the room hesitantly as she shut the door behind them and cringing when she saw the broken mirror.

"I don't like this, Paulina," She piped up, "You know that was a ghost that was just in here, right? What if it comes back!"

"Phantom will save us before that's a problem," Paulina said confidently, "He always does. Now, about you…" Raven glared at the cheerleader, who smirked down at her like an evil queen who was just about to order a beheading.

"What about me?" the Titan challenged.

"I want to know who you think you are that you can come into my school and try and make a mockery of me." Paulina said, resting against the sink.

"You're school?" Raven repeated, her eyebrow kicking up.

"That's right," Paulina said, "I heard you were home schooled, so let me fill you in, _perdedor_," (Raven made a mental note to ask Bumblebee what that word meant.) "This school doesn't belong to Mr. Lancer, or Mrs. Ishiyama, or Dash Baxter. I am the one who decide who's in and who's out. I am the one who decided how the teachers see you. If I wanted to, I can have you thrown out like _that_," Paulina emphasized the word with a snap of her perfectly manicured fingers.

"Yeah!" Star said bravely from behind Paulina.

"Then why don't you?" Rave challenged.

"Because I'm bored and need some entertainment," Paulina said, crossing her arms. "And you actually have enough backbone to give me some. So consider this your warning, _perdedor,_ nobody makes Paulina Sanchez look like a fool. Fight all you want, but you won't change a thing in this school." And then, with a flip of her hair, Paulina sauntered out, Star at her heels yet again. "_Adios, perdedor_…" Raven scowled after her, the mirror shattering completely, along with the light fixture over head.

"We'll see about that…" She hissed, her eyes glowing black with her power.

* * *

**WoM- 'grinning' _Sounds like Paulina's biting off more then she can chew! And there's still Danny to contest with, too. He comes back in more next chapter, by the way. And don't go thinking too much is gonna change between Valerie and Raven just yet!_**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

epobbp

Shiva the Sarcastic

shadowspinner1

Firehedgehog

Anime Chick009

Light Dragon SunsSong

Invader Johnny

Tizami-Ki

Missmeliss4251

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

conan98002

Feng Yue

I Brake For Ghosts

IwuvMyKenshyPoo

Inviso-Bill

Raving-Lunatic

enigmatic penguin

Desighnergirl123

Seeker Carter

Ant Crown

The Great Susinko

Jak of all Trades

Samantha-Girl Scout

RoseGirl from planet Pluto

Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse

* * *

**Next update;** _January 14th_

_**See you then!**_


	8. Crossfire

**WoM- _Hello again! Dija miss me?_ 'grins _brightly' it's good to have a break from Gender Confusion every now and then! I love my stories to bits, but it's getting to the point where some of the lines are still running through my head in my sleep!_ 'grumbles lightly' _I can't wait to get the two caught up with each other so I can post my new story… Ah, well, pointless rambling over with. Enjoy the chapter!_**

* * *

_"Perhaps the most delightful friendships are those in which there is much agreement, much disputation, and yet more personal liking."_

_**-George Eliot**_

* * *

_Vlad scowled darkly at his white walls, bored out of his mind. There was nothing to do in the cell except sit and dwell on ones thoughts, and it was quickly growing mind-numbing for the billionaire, as escape was impossible in the air-tight security, and nothing else was provided for him to occupy his time._

_He got three meals a day, all prepared to the highest standards of living and served by three guards wearing ghost-proof armor. Other then that, though, he never saw another soul, living or dead. Actually, he was growing quite irritated with waiting for someone to come down and talk to him. As the first half ghost in existence, you would think he'd earn more respect…_

_He came out of his thoughts when he heard footfall echoing down the hall, coming closer and closer. Vlad tensed, half wary and half relieved that SOMETHING was finally happening._

_His eyes narrowing, he waited impatiently for whoever it was to come into sight. A few minutes later, he wasn't disappointed at the appearance of two people, a boy and a girl around the same age, though the boy may have been the younger of the two._

_The boy had a look of cool, smug confidence Vlad wasn't quite sure he was old enough to have. Like all the soldiers, he wore a suit of high-tech armor that kept ghosts from working any powers on him. Still, it was clear from the attention he got that this boy was much more then a common grunt._

_The girl wore long black hair with a silver circlet across her pale forehead. Like the boy, she had a smooth, confident stride in her steps. Unlike her younger companion, though, Vlad could tell instantly that it was a well-earned pride. The fact that he recognized the woman's decorative outfit helped, too._

'Shamaness?'_ He thought, confused. The Haunters had never used professional spiritualists before…_

_"Hello, Mr. Masters," The boy interrupted his thoughts in a pleasant tone as he and the girl stopped outside Vlad's cell. "My sister and I want to have a word with you…"_

'Siblings, then?'_ Vlad frowned, comparing the two, _'they certainly look nothing alike.' _As if sensing his thoughts, the girl gave him an annoyed look._

_"And if I'm not interested in talking?" Vlad challenged._

_"Well, then," The boy smirked, "We'll just have to make you…"_

"Aww, come on, Melissa!" Tucker whined over his girlfriends laugher, "Don't you trust me?"

"You? Yes," Melissa said, smiling broadly like she only did when the two of them were alone and taking his hand, "It's your mouth I don't trust. You know you couldn't keep a secret, Tucker."

"Shows how much you know," Tucker sulked. Melissa laughed again at the sight her grumpy boyfriend made, showing a level of bravery most students at Casper High wouldn't think she possessed by kissing him lightly on the cheek.

"I would tell you if it was my secret, but it's not," She confessed, smiling at him, "Just trust me, okay? It's nothing to be worried about."

Got it," Tucker sighed. Truth was, though, he was worried. He was terrified that some ghost he helped Danny put away would come back for revenge against the two of them by using Melissa against him. Some of Danny's enemies had proven to be smart enough to think of sinister plans like that in the past, Vlad, Walker… Even Skulker and Spectra had their moments.

So when Melissa came home three hours late last night, he was busy wearing a past in his floor with his pacing as he debated on whether or not to call Danny. Then when she finally did get home, the only excuse she had for her tardiness was that she 'ran into a little trouble.'

Tucker sighed. He would feel a little better about the whole thing if Danny and Melissa could just learn to get along, but he didn't see that happening any time soon.

_'Especially not with Valerie there corrupting his mind,'_ He added darkly to himself, not willing to forgive the girl as easily as Danny had. Trying to kill someone best friend over a lost rep was a little harsh in his book…

Movement caught the corner of Tucker's eye, and years of helping Danny ghost hunt taught him to look up sharply, just in time to see the edge of a cloak or a cape disappear around a corner and into a dark alley.

"Tucker?" Melissa said curiously, glancing in the direction Tucker's eyes were focused.

"It's nothing," Tucker said, standing up, "Can you go ahead without me? I need to talk to Danny for a second,"

"A-alright…' Melissa said, blinking as Tucker started off without waiting for a reply. Confused and a little worried, Melissa started towards class as Tucker headed off for Danny's locker, deep in thought.

_'This can't mean anything good…'_ He said grimly to himself

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 8; Crossfire _

* * *

"Really?" Danny said, frowning slightly. "Weird…"

"You think it's Technus?" Tucker asked, "Or Plasmius, maybe…"

"Maybe…" Danny said carefully.

"But you don't think so," Tucker finished for him with a dry look.

"It's just… all of this is really weird," Danny sighed, "I mean, all the recent ghost activity, that girl last night, Vlad's phone call, what Jazz saw in the ally last night…" Tucker blinked at him.

"Riiight," He drawled out, "Hey, Danny? When you decide to start making sense, just gimme a call," Danny rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Last night I was finishing up a fight with a ghost when I met a really weird girl."

"Ghost hunter weird or fangirl weird?" Tucker asked.

"TUCKER!" Danny growled, blushing slightly as he glared at his friend, "That was a one time thing and we all agreed it never happened!" Tucker chuckled slightly.

"I still can't believe some girl you've never spoken to a day in your life tried to-!"

_**"TUCKER!"**_

"Alright, alright!" Tucker said, holding up his hands in a peaceful gesture to avoid yet another nasty overshadowing-based prank. "Anyways, go on,"

"Well, to answer part of your question, she wasn't a ghost hunter," Danny sighed, "She was… I dunno. But she was definitely alive and she had a really weird power. It was kind like ecto-energy, only it felt a little different. And it was black. I've never seen black ecto-energy before." Tucker nodded thoughtfully, pulling out his PDA and tapping furiously on the screen.

"What did she look like?" The tech-geek asked.

"Well, I never saw her face… but she wore a blue cloak with a red and gold clasp, her boots matched her cloak. I think she had a black leotard on underneath, and some kind of belt… anyways she was really pale, and her eyes were purple."

Tucker made small noises with everything Danny listed off, not that all surprised that he remembered all those small details. His friend had learned to notice everything, even in the heat of battle.

"Aaaand… Match!" Tucker grinned proudly at his skills for a moment, until his eyes scanned the information. His grin fell. "Uh-oh…"

"Uh-oh what?" Danny asked, alert.

"…Uhh…" Tucker cringed. Panicking slightly, Danny grabbed the PDA out of his friend's hands, ignoring the cry of protest.

On the screen was a full picture, then a side profile of the girl he'd spoken to last night. He cloak was down in the profile, and he saw her short hair, the same violet color of her eyes. Her face was just as pale as the rest of her, but the look seemed to suit her better then it did most people.

"That's her!" Danny said, his eyes skipping over to the text. He paled at the first line. "Oh, no…"

'One of the five original Teen Titans, Raven is known to be a master of magic…'

"…There's siccing the Titans on me now?" Danny wailed, slumping against the lockers. He was familiar with the crime fighters. After all, who wasn't? They were famous all over the world for their heroics.

"What can I say, dude, when it rains it pours," Tucker said sympathetically. "Well, at least we can be pretty sure she isn't here to do any damage to the town, with her rep."

"Yeah…" Danny sighed. "I just wish people would have a little more faith in me…" Tucker looked faintly annoyed.

"And by 'people' you mean 'Valerie,'" He stated, crossing his arms.

"I never said that," Danny denied sharply.

"Didn't not say it, either," Tucker pointed out.

"I thought Sam was in France, Tuck," Danny snapped.

"Which leaves me with twice the work to keep you from getting your butt fried," Tucker sighed, "Look, I know you like Valerie, but don't you think that maybe you're taking an unnecessary risk on your life? She's a ghost hunter, Danny, and she's out for your blood,"

"She is not!" Danny said defensively. "…She's out for Phantom's blood. She's friends with Fenton."

"News Flash, pal," Tucker frowned, "Fenton and Phantom are kinda the same person; You." Danny sighed.

"I get it, alright?" Danny said bitterly, "I won't tell Valerie about my ghost form until I think she can handle it," Tucker's eyes widened.

"Wait!" He protested, "What's that supposed to-!"

"Can we get back to the recent surge of weirdness, now?" Danny interrupted his friend. He didn't want to answer any more questions about Valerie. Tucker sighed irritably.

"Fine," He said. He made a mental note to tell Sam about all this next time she snuck away from the nuns long enough to get on a computer and talk to them. She was better at handling this stuff then he was…

"Anyways, after I spoke to Raven, I started to fly back home and found Jazz standing by an alley looking pretty freaked out. She even attacked me with the Fenton Anti-Creep stick when I asked her what she was doing."

"Can't you guys just call it a bat?" Tucker sighed.

"And after acting like a complete loon for about ten minutes, she told me she was some freaky guy in a cape in the alley talking to a glowing green light."

"Never a good sign," Tucker noted.

"My thoughts exactly. There was nothing in the alley, but the strain on the dimensional barrier was a little stronger there, so I think she did see something. Then she goes and tells me that Vlad called out house to warn me about something." Tucker's eyes widened.

"Wait; VLAD called to warn YOU about something?" Danny nodded. "That wins for freakiest event of the millennium."

"Right," Danny sighed, "Jazz said he was really insistent about warning me. Something about Hunters or Haunters or something like that…"

"I'll see what I can pull up." Tucker said, taking back his PDA, "In the meantime, be careful, okay? All this stuff it really creeping me out…"

_'And I didn't even tell him about how the guys from the alley want to kidnap and kill me…' _He thought dryly.

"Deal," Danny said, "As long as you promise the same thing. You're in just as much danger as I am,"

"Lair," Tucker said with a ghost of a smile, "You always take the worst hits, Danny," before Danny could respond, the bell rang, "I've gotta get to History. Later, Danny."

"See ya," Danny said, waving to his best friend before he turned and started away. He frowned as Tucker's warnings about Valerie played in his head again.

_'He's just overreacting.'_ Danny reassured himself, _'And anyways, we're just friends. No danger in being friends, right?'_

Still, Danny knew parts of his friend's warnings were true. Telling Valerie that Danny Phantom and Danny Fenton were one in the same would only lead to more problems for both of them, and Danny wasn't sure if he could take losing another friend. Besides, when she wasn't shooting ecto-blasts at him, Valerie was really cool and fun to be around.

Now if only she would see Phantom wasn't evil…

Danny jerk out of his thoughts when he accidentally knocked into someone, stumbling a little but managing to catch himself before he fell. The girl he'd walked into wasn't as lucky and tripped into the lockers, her books spewing all over the place.

"Oops!" Danny cringed in guilt, helping her gather them, "Sorry about that…"

"I-It's okay!" The girl stammered. Behind her, the girl's friend giggled slightly.

"Here," Danny said, helping the girl up and handing her the books, "Ah, sorry again, I should've watched where I was going…"

"Really, it's fine," The girl assure him, blushing, "I've gotta go!" And, before Danny could say anything, the two girls took off, giggling madly. Danny frowned after them.

_'What the heck was that about?'_ he thought, bewildered.

* * *

"You're insane," Valerie said plainly, "You know that, right? Either insane or stupid, cause you gotta be one of them to pull the crap you did this morning."

"I'm not going to let someone else push me around," Raven said firmly. "What, you like being treated like dirt?" Valerie rolled her eyes.

"You are completely oblivious to social structure, aren't you," She said dryly. Raven gave her a blank look and the girl sight, "Look, I'm only gonna warn you once more; Getting into fights with the popular kids will only make your life harder then it has to be. I'm not sure what it's like being home schooled, but in high school you make sacrifices in order to survive, and yeah, sometimes that sacrifice means not punching out someone who really deserves it."

"And where do you fall in this spectrum?" Raven asked.

"Reject," Valerie said bluntly, "Or outcast. That's the nicer sounding one for when I'm within hearing distance."

"And that shallow little brat?" Raven asked, motioning towards Paulina. Valerie blinked.

"Creepy," She muttered. At Raven's quizzical look, she added, "Manson used to call Paulina a shallow little witch."

"Witches are nicer," Raven responded without hesitation. They were, too. She knew several people of the Wiccan faith who were almost as cheery as Starfire.

"Anyways, Paulina's top of the food chain," Valerie sighed, "Meaning if she says something will happen, it WILL happen, no ifs, ands, or buts,"

"We'll see about that," Raven said, her look darkening.

"Confident, aren't we?" Valerie asked in a mocking tone. Then her face lit up before Raven could retort, "DANNY!" She called, waving furiously.

Turning, Raven was the grinning Fenton was indeed making his way over to their table to take the seat he had sat in the day before. He looked a little tired for someone who had turned in early, and Raven couldn't help but notice how relieved he looked to be sitting down.

"Hey Val, hey Rae," Danny said casually, unpacking his lunch.

"You okay, Fenton?" Valerie asked, looking worried.

"Fine," Danny sighed, "I just had a really… _busy_ morning," the girls exchanged looks as Danny made a face.

"What, did you mom try and make breakfast again or something?" Valerie asked, suppressing a smile. One still couldn't say the word 'bacon,' in front of Jazz without making her shutter violently…

"Not exactly." Danny answered, shaking his head, "It's just… have you ever had the feeling someone was watching you?"

"Eyes on the back of your neck sorta thing?" Valerie clarified. "Yeah, I've been there,"

"You're probably just being paranoid," Raven reassured him, "I couldn't blame you, either, considering your bedroom is over a portal into a parallel dimension full of malevolent spirits,"

"It's not a ghost," Danny said, frowning, "I can tell when it's a ghost." He could? Valerie blinked, getting interested. THAT was a trick that could definitely be useful… "Speaking of which, here's the information my dad wanted me to give you two. You sure you want to come, Rae? Some of these people get a little… eccentric. And that's comparing them to my _parents_."

"I'm sure," Raven responded, taking the packet, "Like I said, I really like paranormal things…"

"Hey, it's your funeral." Danny shrugged.

"So, Danny," Valerie said, leaning in to talk to the boy, "Any word from Sam lately?" She didn't like the girl, but that didn't mean she couldn't feel sorry about what the goth was being up through. Valerie was very, VERY glad her father was more lenient then that.

"No," Danny sighed. "Not for a while now… I should get another letter soon, hopefully."

"Hopefully," Valerie repeated, though her heart wasn't really into it. While she couldn't say she wanted Sam cut completely from Danny's life, she did enjoy this time alone with him, where the girl wasn't breathing down her neck like she had when she was still in the continent.

Really could the girl be any more obvious with her feelings?

_'Then again, this is Mr. Oblivious we're talking about…'_ Valerie noted in dry amusement.

"Hi Danny!" A girl blurted out as she passed their table, blushed slightly as her friend grinned at her encouragingly.

"Uh, hey?" Danny replied, blinking in confusion.

"You know them?" Raven asked.

"I bumped into one of them in the hall today," Danny explained, "Don't know why they're acting so weird…"

_'…I rest my case.'_ Valerie thought, sighing silently and fighting a smile. She wasn't too concerned. The girl who'd just passed probably used up all her courage on just saying 'hi' to Danny, there was no way she could ever have the guts to spell her feeling out for the boy.

"Danny!" A familiar voice sang out, stopping all activity at the table.

"Paulina?" Danny said, looking very confused.

_'This one, on the other hand…'_ Valerie thought, glaring at Paulina. Raven didn't look too happy with the cheerleader's sudden appearance either.

"Hey Danny!" Paulina giggled, "I was just wondering if you were going to the big fair this Saturday?"

"Fair?" Danny repeated, frowning, "Sorry, Paulina, I'm not sure if I can make it. I've got this family thing I need to do,"

"That's right," Valerie said, smirking at her ex-friend, "We're all leaving this Saturday, and we won't be back until Tuesday," Paulina paused to give Valerie an annoyed look before turning a pout on Danny.

"Oh, come on, Danny! Can't you at least come for five minutes!" She pleaded, making her eyes big and sad. Valerie and Raven's scowling became more pronounced as Danny blushed slightly.

"W-well, I guess just stopping by for a few minutes can't hurt…" He agreed. He missed the triumphant smirk Paulina shot the two girls as she hugged Danny.

"Thanks, Danny!" She sang out, "Can't wait to see you there!" And with a little wave, the popular girl headed back to her own territory.

"What the heck was that about?" Valerie demanded.

"Oh, come on, Val," Danny sighed, "She really wanted to see me there. Besides, it's an all day fair and we're not leaving until one in the afternoon." Valerie sighed in frustration.

"Fine," She said sullenly, "But I'm going with you! You can never trust Paulina's crowd!" Danny rolled his eyes.

"What's she gonna do?" He asked, standing up to throw away his trash, "Kidnap me?"

"Wouldn't put it past her…" Valerie growled in annoyance as he left. Once he was gone, she turned to glare at Raven. "You know this is your fault, right?"

"How do you figure that?" Raven shot back, glaring as well. She wasn't in a compliant mood.

"Hmm, let's see," Valerie said sarcastically, "You diss Paulina and her cronies and suddenly Miss Too-Good-For-Any-Guy-But-Phantom is trying to get her claws into Danny. Anyone else see the connection here?" Raven scowled.

"I can handle myself against Paulina," She said firmly. Valerie rolled her eyes.

"We'll see." She said, standing to throw her trash away and catch up with Danny. Raven scowled as she watched her go, before it turned into a cruel smile as she plotted her counterassault…

* * *

**WoM- _Uh-oh! Raven's plotting!_ _Meep!_ 'hides' _Oh and did everyone else catch Flirting With Disaster last night? When it was over, I was torn between hugging Valerie and smacking her across the head. Still, the new outfits REALLY cool_ (Especially since you can see her face now) _and I just loved the scene were Val was defending Danny with nothing more then an empty milk carton and a broken tree branch._ ( D)**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Missmeliss4251

Invader Johnny

epobbp

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

Firefury

My Eternal Facade

Tizamiki

Divine-Red-Crayon

Ytak

Seeker Carter

Tetsukon

Shiva the Sarcastic

Samantha-Girl Scout

noveler00

conan98002

Darth Frodo

Ant Crown

Firehedgehog

The Halfa Wannabe

Raving-Lunatic

Petitio Principii

Reggie Tuesday

I Brake For Ghosts

Anime Chick009

Light Dragon SunsSong

The Great Susinko

Spirit of Zurvan

Opus

* * *

**Next update; **_January 21st_

_**See you then!**_


	9. Fair's Fair

**WoM- _It took me forever to decide what I wanted to do with this chapter! Writer's Block sucks big time… Anywho, here's where things begin to pick up! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to find somewhere nice and cozy to hide…_ 'grins nervously'**

---

"_This above all: TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE. And it must follow as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."_

_**-William Shakespeare**_

---

_"That's him?" A voice asked incredulously as she gaped down at the scene in front of her. She ignored the pretty Hispanic girl, along with the pale one in the dark clothes and the one who looked ready to murder the next thing that twitched the wrong way._

_"Yes Ma'am," The man next to her confirmed, "He has no knowledge of our surveillance, and so far he hasn't used any powers in our sight, but all the sources point to this child as the ghost boy."_

_"Wow," The girl frowned, "Looking at him, you never wouldn't expected it…"_

_"What are your orders, Ma'am?" The man asked._

_"For now, just keep an eye on him." The girl started. "And for god's sake, stay out of sight! Considering how jumpy the kid looks, I wouldn't be surprised if he knew you were watching, even if he doesn't know where you are."_

_"No need to worry, Ma'am," The man assured her, "I'm a master of stealth."_

_"Well, make sure to give Alex a few pointers," The girl said, turning to her silent companion. "He's quiet enough, but too slow."_

_"Is there anything else, Ma'am?" The man asked._

_"You mean about the ghost child?" The girl clarified. "Think you can keep an eye on those girls he's with too? And the pretty one with the nasty attitude?"_

_"Yes, Ma'am." Them man confirmed. Then, a little curious, he added, "May I ask why, Ma'am?" The girl smiled, though it didn't reach he eyes._

_"Isn't it obvious?" She asked, bemused. "It's the little things like that that are his greatest weakness…"_

"So he fell for it?" Star asked as Paulina rejoined them, her eyebrow kicking up.

"Of course," Paulina scoffed. "You though he wouldn't?"

"Of course not!" Star said quickly, knowing what doubting Paulina would get her. "Fenton's such a loser…"

"Tell me about it." Dash scowled, "That new girlfriend of his, too. I mean, she's got a better body then Manson, but she's such a-!"

"Watch it, Baxter," Paulina narrowed her eyes, "I've got dibs on the Perdedora, remember?"

"Besides," Kwan chuckled slightly, "Why should you let her do any more damage to your ego…" The Asian looked pointedly at the bruise on his teammates cheek, and Dash scowled back darkly.

"Shut up!" He snapped.

"So what are we gonna do once they show up, anyways?" Star asked.

"Leave Fenton and Grey out of this," Paulina said absently, "I need Fenton as bait for Phantom to come, and Grey will just make a huge scene." Secretly, The girl was wary of angering her once best friend any more. She knew how Valerie could hold a grudge, and didn't want a full blast of that animosity turned to her.

"But I wanted to introduce Fenton to the dunking booth," Dash whined, looking like a kid who'd just been told Christmas was cancelled.

"Then wait until after I catch up with Phantom," Paulina snapped, "After that, I could care less what you do with the loser."

"Dunno why you like that ghost so much anyways, Paulina," Dash grumbled. "I mean, it's not like he's looking for a girlfriend. He's dead for crying out loud!"

"Excuse me?" Paulina said, her tone cold as ice. "You have a problem with my taste in boys, Dash?"

"No!" Dash said quickly, "I just thought…"

"Well don't," Paulina snapped irritably, "It's not your best talent. Stick with hitting people, Dash, it's what you're good at." And, without another word to her friends, Paulina stood and left.

"Paulina!" Star called, jumping up to follow her. "Wait up! See ya, boys!" Kwan and Dash watched the two girls go, identical blank looks on their faces.

"Was it something I said?" Dash asked his friend, bewildered. Kwan's only response to him was a confused shrug.

---

BLACKBIRD Chapter 9; Fair's Fair 

---

"Step right up, folks, five dollars to test your strength and win a fabulous prize!" The man called out eagerly to those around him. Raven studied the contraption skeptically as she walked past it.

"It's rigged," She announced dryly to Danny and Valerie. "He's got a stopper about three fourths the way up. There's no way anyone with normal human strength can win at that."

"Really?" Danny said curiously, craning his neck around to look at the machine again. "How could you tell with just one glance?"

'Because one of my friends is a master of cyber robotics,' Raven answered dryly in her head.

"I've got my ways." She told him out loud. Danny laughed and Valerie looked a little annoyed.

"Hey, Danny!" She said suddenly, a wide grin on her face, "Check that out!" Both Danny and Raven turned to look in the direction Valerie was pointing. Raven's eyebrow kicked up as Danny groaned.

"Oh, no…" He moaned. "No, no, nooooo…"

"What's the big deal about the Haunted House?" Raven asked skeptically. Valerie laughed and Danny cringed, his posture sinking a little lower.

"Well…" Danny started hesitantly, "…Remember how my parents are ghost hunters?"

"Yeah." Raven frowned, a little confused, "So?" Before Danny could answer, the reply came in the form of Jack Fenton's loud, booming voice.

"I'M TELLING YOU THE FENTON FINDER SAYS THERE'S A REAL GHOST IN THERE!" He was bellowing at the short man in charge of the tickets.

"Whatever, man," The man scoffed. "You can yell and scream all you want, but facts are facts; You and your wife are still banned from ever entering a Haunted House, or any other attractions with the word 'Haunted,' in it,"

"Listen, pal!" Maddie growled, "If that ghost hurts anyone of your customers…!"

"Lady, if half the stuff I've heard about you two is true, I'd rather take my chances with the ghosts."

"…I see…" Raven said, bemused as she looked between the three red faced Fentons. Though Jack and Maddie were red from rage while their son was horribly embarrassed. "…Anyone up for the bumper cars?"

"I'm in." Valerie and Danny said as one. Danny rushed ahead of the girls, eager to get away before someone recognized him.

"And you say I'm dense to how things work in society?" Raven said wryly with one last glance at the Fentons before she and Valerie followed.

"The Fentons aren't bad if people just give 'em a chance." Valerie shrugged. "Actually, it's kind of fun how wacky and unpredictable things get in their house." The girl started laughing as she added. "Like Jazz's last birthday party. Now THAT was a day for the history books!"

"Do I really wanna know what happened?" Raven asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"Long story short, a ghost attacked in the middle of the cake cutting. Spectra, I think her name was… Anyways, the Fentons went ballistic and all the kids from school were outta there before she even finished introducing herself. I was on my way to get my-!" Valerie cut herself off, "Well, Jazz ended up getting so mad at her parents that she locked her dad in the Fenton Stockades for the night and made her Mom write letters of apology to everyone that came to the party." Raven shook her head.

"How is it that Jazz is more a parent then her parents are?" Raven asked wryly.

"It's just her nature, I think," Valerie replied. "She's worse with Danny, though. Acts like she wants to drag him into a hospital every time he gets a scratch. Then again, it's in a Fenton's nature to take overprotective to a whole new level."

"You should fit right in then," Raven said wryly. She didn't mean it to sound anything other then how she said it, But Valerie obviously took it differently considering the way her face filled with color.

"What's with you, anyways?" Valerie asked nervously, glaring at Raven and clearly trying to drive the words from her head.

"What do you mean?" Raven asked, a little taken aback.

"Everyone in this town tried to avoid the Fentons until they get used to their weird ways," Valerie explained, "But you just walk in and barely raise an eyebrow at the way they act. Then you even go as far as to invite yourself on a camping trip with them."

"It's like I said before," Raven sighed, "I'm really interested in the paranormal, okay?"

"See, I fell for that at first," Valerie said coolly, "But not any more. I've been thinking about that you said and I realized how weird it is for a friend to call you by your full name." Raven winced at the accusation.

"It's a nickname," She said, glaring at the girl, "My friends thought it was cool how Rae Venn could sound like Raven, so they started calling me that all the time." Valerie scowled at the girl, looking annoyed.

"You don't honesty expect me to fall for that, do you?" She demanded, "Especially when you're such a terrible liar."

If Raven didn't have bigger things to worry about right now, she'd take offence to that…

Just then, loud explosions made both girls jump, twisting around to see a back and silver bur shoot past them and crash into a booth for throwing balls at stacks of bottles.

Valerie and Raven gasped in union when they recognized the 'blur' as the infamous Danny Phantom, their eyes widening as a strange female ghost with a guitar, a big ghost dressed in what looked like a white suit, and shadowy ghost with glowing green eyes all advanced on the fallen ghost kid.

"Well, Dipstick?" the female asked, glaring down at the ghost below her. "Still think you can take us all at once?" Neither Valerie nor Raven noticed the way the other's eyes narrowed grimly on the screaming crowd around them before returning to the group of ghosts.

"I gotta go!" Raven and Valerie said as one before dashing off in opposite direction, never heeding the other.

"Well look who it is…" Raven scowled at the familiar, cocky voice, turning to glare at the smirking Paulina. "Having fun with the dork couple, perdedora?" Raven's eyes narrowed at the insult, which Bumblebee had translated to 'loser,' when she asked.

"Find someone else to bother, airhead." Raven snapped back, enjoying Paulina's gasp at being insulted in her native tongue. "I'm busy right now."

"You think so, huh?" Paulina challenged, her eyes narrowing. "We'll see how busy you are, you little loser!" Raven snapped then, in a build up of impatience, annoyance and pure loathing for the girl.

"Azarath, Metrion Zinthos," She muttered under her breath. The empty container next to the girl, used to keep the monkeys used for a stage act, came to life in a burst of black light, swallowing her and slamming the doors, ignoring her cries of protest as the lock clicked shut.

"What the-?" Smirking, Raven turned and started away, ignoring the blue eye glaring at her from one of the air holes near the top of the box. "Get back here and get me out! Hey? Are you listening? HEY!"

Raven wondered for a moment if she should've maybe covered the girl's mouth with something too…

---

"Every year without fail…" Danny sighed. "I can get dad not noticing how much trouble it causes, but mom?"

"Talking to yourself now, Dipstick?" Danny froze at the familiar voice, groaning as his ghost sense went off.

_'Figures this was the one year they're right,'_ He thought sourly to himself.

"What you to want Emb-?" Danny cut himself off, his eyes wide.

Floating about him wasn't just Ember, but Walker and Johnny 13's Shadow as well. The biker and his girlfriend were at the opening of a nearby alley, along with Youngblood and Technus.

Bullet Spectra, Bertrand and Klemper were off in another alley, and Box Ghost, Lunch Lady, Poindexter, Desiree and several ghosts Danny couldn't name were all crowding into other places here and there.

_'…Aw, Hell!' _The half ghost cursed to himself, falling back into a defensive position and going ghost without a word, lest he alert the other fair-goers to what was going on. _'Not that I know that myself…'_

"Why are you all here?" Danny demanded sharply.

"We're here to capture you before they do, punk!" Walker responded.

"What?" Danny said, confused. "What are you…?"

"No time to talk!" Spectra hissed, "The Haunters could be watching all of us right now!" Danny scowled.

"Whatever this is about, I'm not going anywhere without a fight!" Walker grinned down at him, looking delighted at his words.

"That's what I was hoping for, punk," He smirked. "See, I might not believe in the Haunters, but I'm willin' to take any excuse to lock you up and throw away the key," Before Danny could ask what he meant by that and who the heck the Haunters were, Walker rammed a fist into him, sending him flying.

He stopped when he hit a game booth, blinking up in a daze when Ember, Shadow and Walker flew to hover over him. He heard the screaming and yelling of the people around him and ignored it as usual, too busy focusing on his fight for his life.

"Well, Dipstick?" Ember challenged with a smirk. "Still think you can take us all at once?"

'I might be in trouble here…' Danny thought grimly, wracking his brain for a way out of his current situation.

"What are you waiting for?" Kitty yelled as she and Johnny came upon them, "Knock him out already before the Haunters start coming back!"

"And thought Valerie could hold a grudge…" Danny said as he started to shake off the surprise attack. If he could just keep them talking…

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Kitty snapped back, "Believe it or not, we're doing this for your own good!"

"I choose not," Danny said. And, without waiting for a reaction, the half ghost turned intangible and sunk into the ground, coming up behind Walker and pounding him with an ecto-blast while his guard was down.

Realizing what'd happened, the rest of the ghosts immediately turned on Danny. Before anyone could do anything, though, a blast of energy his Shadow, making him evaporate with a cry of pain.

"You ghosties are goin' down!"

"Aw, crud…" Danny groaned as Valerie flew in and charged up her ecto-gun again, aiming it at the half ghost this time.

"Bye bye, Punk!" Valerie snarled, blasting at him. Danny dodged it, and the next three shots his friend fired before finding refuge behind a hot dog stand.

"Great," Danny said sarcastically, "All of the Ghost Zone has banned together to capture me, one of my closest friends want me dead and apparently someone I don't even know wants to kill me. Can this day get any better?"

"There he is, Jack!" Danny yelped as the wood next to his ear exploded, his cheek hot from the wind of the ecto-blast.

_'Ask and you shall receive…'_ Danny quoted a favorite saying of Sam's for when karma started kicking someone's butt bitterly in his head.

"Look, I don't have time for-!"

"Found him!" Spectra called, wrapping her arms around Danny for a bear hug he was left struggling to get out of. Glaring around him, Danny saw that most of his enemies had gathered around, though Ember and Johnny were left fighting a very ticked off Valerie. Danny was starting to panic now, looking around from one face to another.

_'There's just too many of them!'_ He thought frantically, _'There's too many!'_ The panic caused a build up on his chest and the next thing Danny knew…

"What the-?" Spectra gasped, jumping away with a hiss and covering her eyes as Danny was engulfed in a brilliant white light. She turned to glare at the boy, but was left gaping instead, along with everyone else there. Even Ember, Johnny and Valerie stopped fighting to stare.

Because floating there wasn't just one Danny, but four very separate and very surprised Dannys.

"Okay, that's a new one," Kitty said, still a little stunned.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Walker demanded. "Get him! …Err, them…Aw, you know what I mean, get the punk!"

With several angry cries, the ghosts attacked the group of halflings in front of them, and Jack and Maddie were left watching the whole thing in bewilderment.

"I'm gonna crush you, punk!" Walker growled, Uprooting a nearby stand to throw at Danny.

_"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"_ Walker yelled in surprise when the stand was enveloped in a black energy and flung back at him, and all four Phantoms faltered and turned to face Raven.

Bullet took advantage of this to send one Phantom flying into another, getting rid of two at once before Raven nailed him with some of her magic. She glared around her as the ghosts watched back warily.

"I believe you guys have done enough damage today," She said coolly, giving the two remaining Phantoms a pointed look. They shrugged as one.

"Fine by me," They said together, disappearing. The ghosts started in surprised.

"You mean, they were all duplications?" Johnny demanded angrily. Ember sighed in annoyance.

"We've done what we can today," She announced, "Let's get back to the Ghost Zone before we're the next ones captured by the Haunters."

And without another glance at Raven, the singer disappeared as easily as Phantom, and the other ghosts followed suit one by one. Walker was the last one left, staring bitterly at the last spot the Phantoms had been in.

"Don't think that stunt will work on me next time, Punk!" He promised loudly before disappearing as well. Raven sighed and shook her head, about to leave when the ghost hunter cut her escape short.

"Who are you?" Valerie demanded, "And what was with the funky black glow?"

"I don't have time to answer your questions," Raven said, pulling her hood up and turning away.

"Where'd Phantom go?" She continued as if she hadn't heard the girl, her tone darker as she added, "I still need to pummel that creep!"

"I don't know, okay?" Raven said, glaring slightly, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other things to worry about right now!" and, with a sweep of her cloak, Raven teleported herself away, frantic to find Danny and Valerie before they got any more suspicious.

"What was her problem?" Valerie muttered to herself before kicking her jet sled 2.0 into high gear to find a place to change back so she could meet up with Danny again and make sure he and Rae were okay.

---

Paulina scowled to herself.

She was gonna KILL that no good Rachel Venn as soon as she got out of the smelly, feces-covered cage she was now locked in.

'And these shoes were brand new!' She thought mournfully, looking down at her stylish sandals. Just then a noise outside had her turning back to the air holes and brightening slightly.

Sitting right behind a shed was a haggard-looking Phantom, trying desperately to catch his breath. Paulina watched curiously as he tensed at the sounds of the battle on the other side of the shed he was taking cover behind, looking around it warily to see what was going on. After a few minutes, the ghost smiled to himself.

"Wow," He laughed, "Perfect time to finally get Duplication! Maybe I should just stick to one or two for a while, though. Being five Dannys at once really gets my power running low…" Paulina blinked.

_'Duplication?'_ She thought, _'As in more then one Phantoms?'_ She grinned at the thought. Shaking herself out of her fantasies, she turned back to call out to the ghost when…

"Better change back while I have the chance…" Phantom muttered to himself. "Besides, I need to catch up with Val and Rae," Before Paulina could wonder what he meant by that, a ring of light circled Phantom's torso and spilt in both directions, leaving another familiar and completely unexpected boy in her hero's place.

Paulina gasped, her eyes wide as she watched Danny Fenton run off, completely unaware of what the cheerleader had seen.

"Danny…?" She whispered to herself, **_"Danny Fenton is the Ghost-Boy!"_**

---

**WoM- _There! I think that's a good length for this chapter! Especially since I had such a hard time writing it. Now if you'll excuse me…_ 'Locks Anti-Rabid Angry Reviewer And Murderous Fans Shelter and hides in a corner with an anti-creep stick,'**

---

**Thanks to;**

---

**Next update;** _January 28th_

**_See you then!_** **(Hopefully…)**


	10. Lamb in the Lion's Den

**WoM- 'leaving her shelter attentively, anti-creep stick still in her hands,' _Ah, Hello… now, I know some of you are still a little… upset… over last chapter, but I have something very important to say about the cancellation of Danny Phantom. _'clears throat,' _NOOOOOOOOOOOO! WHY? _WHY? WHYYYYYYYY? 'clears throat again' _Thank you._**

* * *

"_Contests allow no excuses, no more do friendships."_

_**-Ibycus**_

* * *

_"Amazing!" The girl breathed, grinning widely as she scanned the picture's of Danny fighting, which had been pinned up on the wall in front of her, "Absolutely amazing! Trent was right about him, he could be the missing link we were looking for!" The girl laughed giddily, "Wow! Who would've thought we'd be the generation to find him?"_

_The girl grinned widely at her companion, but the Shamaness didn't return the gesture. In fact, the older girl's eyes never left the mug in front of her, clouded in thought._

_"We shouldn't bring him into the plans," She said softly after a long silence. "Trent should stay content with using the other half ghost and leaving this one be. He has far too much untapped powers to be taken lightly."_

_"Ah, you worry too much," The other girl shrugged, "No matter how many powers it has, a ghost is still a ghost, and it's our job as the Haunters to determine which Ghosts are worth the time of day," The girl grinned widely, "And boy, is this one a Grade A package or what? Young, fit, smart, strong, fast AND still not technically dead to boot!"_

_"So then he isn't truly a ghost?" The Shamaness pointed out._

_"Ah, why sweat the details?" the girl waved a hand carelessly, "The point is, a chance like this is never gonna come along again. So why don't we take advantage of it while it has and see what makes a Ghost Boy tick?"_

_"And I suppose the morality of respecting a fellow living creature's spirit doesn't concern you in the slightest," The Shamaness said coolly._

_"You're the only religion freak around here, Megumi," the girl said, rolling her eyes. "And let's face it, you're lucky to still be here," Megumi narrowed her eyes before standing and heading to the door._

_"Excuse me," She said before she left. The girl giggled in her wake._

_"You shouldn't upset her like that." A young voice said as Trent entered the room, giving the girl a disapproving frown. "We still need Megumi's powers, upsetting her with throw off her concentration."_

_"Yeah, yeah," The girl shrugged, "Dunno why we need her. Father never used magic."_

_"And where's father now?" Trent asked._

_"Good point…" The girl rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Well? Are you gonna listen to the goody-goody and let Phantom slip through our fingers, or have I found myself a new pet?" Trent turned and looked at the photos of Danny Phantom's fight at the fair, a secretive smile playing at his lips…_

"Hm…" Clockwork said nothing more or less as he floated there, watching the image in front of him. His eyes flicked from the tense couple in front driving to the four teenagers in the back seat, three girls and one boy.

The boy was a half-ghost trying to save the world, one of the girls was a ghost hunter who was in love with her enemy without even knowing it, and another a half demon who'd been prophesized to bring about the end of the world, the last was a fairly normal girl in a highly abnormal setting.

_'There is something to be said about today's generation of teenagers,'_ Clockwork thought dryly, _'They certainly know how to put themselves in the most… interesting situations.'_

"Well, Clockwork?" one of the pair of Observants behind him pressed. "What is the course of action you choose?" Clockwork frowned.

"If I choose neither?" He asked mildly.

"You know that is not an option" The other Observant said, "You've interfered and altered the course of history on his behalf once before, Clockwork, any more could reek havoc on the time stream."

"Either you choose to let the boy die…"

"Or hand him a fate that could be worse then death," Clockwork finished. He held up a hand, looking at the small, blood red gem he had dangling from a chain laced around his fingers. "…Danny has overcome adversaries before. I suppose it would only be fair to take a leap of faith and allow him the choice for himself…"

"Is that your answer, Clockwork?" The Observant asked.

"Yes," The Master of Time said, "I will give him the Demon Eye."

"Very well," The Observants said, fading out, "We will report your decision to the Ghost Council. And remember, no tricks this time, Clockwork!" And without another word, the Observants were gone.

Clockwork didn't flinch at their exit, instead staring at the glittering gem a few moments longer before sighing and clenching it in his fist, his face set into a grim determination.

"Forgive me, Danny," He said softly, "All I can do now is wish you the strength to overcome this…" And, after putting the jewel safely in a pocket, the ghost reached for his staff. "TIME OUT!"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 10; Lamb Among the Lions_

* * *

"Mom? Dad? Are you two okay?" Jazz asked, concerned for her parents. They were being quiet for once in their life, and considering that the group was heading for a Ghost Hunter's Campout, that was setting off all the balls and whistles in Jazz's head.

Her parents were NEVER quiet. ESPECIALLY when they were heading somewhere ghost-related.

"Fine, sweetie," Maddie answered absently. Danny and Jazz exchanged glances, sensing the lie but not knowing how to approach it, since neither of the other teenagers who were along for the trip could help them. Valerie was currently curled up on one of their bunk beds, fast asleep after a rough battle with Ember and Johnny 13 and a lecture from her father.

It'd taken her the better part of an hour to convince him not to change his mind about letting her go with the Fentons, and the only reason he relented was because Valerie reminded him that he wanted her to stay informed about how to hunt properly since he couldn't stop her from hunting no matter what he did.

Rae had left for the bathroom to make an important phone call home. Jazz was starting to get suspicious about why a person needed to make so many phone calls, but her brother trusted the girl and Danny's judgment, though not flawless, was certainly sound enough to keep them out of danger. (For the most part.)

Even with that, though, Jazz couldn't shake the feeling that something was up with Rachel Venn. After all, her parents hadn't come to see her off, she never talked about her home life or family, or her old hometown as one who has just moved was often likely to do. All she did was pretty much ask questions and poke around…

"I never thought the day would come that I actually missed the Fenton Family Road Trip Sing-Along," Danny said dryly, drawing Jazz out of her thoughts. The older Fenton blinked before smiling at her brother.

"Look at it this way," She said in dry amusement, "At least they're not discussing tactics for filleting Danny Phantom,"

"True…" Danny winced slightly, making Jazz giggle.

"But they have been acting weird since the fair," Jazz admitted. "…Well, weird for mom and dad, anyways. Which is actually 'normal' by normal standards," Danny rolled his eyes, wondering yet again why his sister was so obsessed with the thought of being normal when it was an impossible dream for any Fenton. It didn't run in their blood to be normal.

One thing Jazz had said really stuck with Danny, though, to the point where he decided to voice his question to see it Jazz was wondering the same thing or not. After all, he hadn't been completely coherent when he changed back due to a massive energy loss combined with blind panic.

"Hey, Jazz, you don't think they know something, do you?" Danny asked his sister softly. No reply. "Jazz?" Danny blinked and glanced around, realizing that everyone had gone eerily still. The GAV wasn't even moving anymore, though Jack's foot was pressed to the accelerator. (much further then it should've been, too.) Glancing down he saw a familiar medallion around his neck just as his ghost sence went off.

"Hello Danny," Clockwork said as he appeared in front of the half ghost.

"Clockwork?" Danny said, phasing out of his seatbelt to stand up. He wasn't angry of suspicious, rather just a mixture of surprised and happy. After all, if it wasn't for the ghost in front of him, Danny could've grown up evil, miserable, orphaned and alone. Clockwork laughed at the warmth of the greeting.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" He asked, amused. Danny grinned for a moment, but it fell away when he realized something.

"You're here about the Haunter thing, aren't you?" He asked, "Whatever's freaking Vlad and the Ghost Zone out so much."

"Yes," Clockwork nodded, "I am. I cannot tell you anything about it, but I can give you this." Danny stared curiously at the small red gem, the size of a marble, that seemed to almost call out to Danny…

"What is it?" Danny asked as he took the jewel from Clockwork.

"It's called a Demon's Eye,"

"Cheery name," Danny said dryly, "What's it do?"

"It protects the one who owns it from mortal peril." Clockwork explained.

"Then why call it a Demon's Eye?" Danny asked, "I mean, if it helps someone like that, shouldn't it be called the Angel's Eye or something?"

"That's all I can tell you, I'm afraid," Clockwork said. At the serious look in his eyes, Danny frowned darkly at the jewel.

"I'm going to need this soon, aren't I?" He asked, though he already knew the answer.

"I'm afraid so," Clockwork answered honestly. Danny's hand clenched around the necklace.

"Is anyone else going to be put into danger because of it?" He asked.

"I cannot say anything else, Danny," Clockwork sighed, "Only offer you this last token of advice in parting," Danny tensed, looking at the ghost intently, "Always remember that your will is your own, and only you are truly capable of allowing it to die,"

"Got it," Danny nodded. "And thanks Clockwork. Again." Clockwork smiled at him.

"Good luck, Danny," He said, "TIME IN!"

"Of course not, Danny," Jazz whispered to her brother, who wasn't too surprised to find himself buckled back into his seat as it the conversation with Clockwork had never happened. "They would've said something if they did know, and they certainly wouldn't drag you right smack dab into a mob of ghost hunters."

"Yeah," Danny sighed, "You're right. Guess I'm just nervous."

"Well don't be, okay?" Jazz smiled, "I'll cover for ya, Danny!"

"Thanks, Jazz," Danny said, smiling back. Jazz turned to look out the window, and Danny took advantage of everyone's distraction to open up his hand and look again at the innocent-looking red jewel…

* * *

"Jack! Maddie!" A skinny man in a lab coat said warmly as he walked over to greet the Fentons, "So nice to see you again!"

"GIOVANNI!" Jack bellowed with a grin, crushing the smaller man in a hug. Giovanni laughed as soon as he had the breath to do so.

"It's nice to see some things never change," He said before turning his attention to the four teenagers behind the large man and grinning at the sight of them, "Oh, you brought your kids too, huh? Mary-Ann's with our trio right now…" Releasing Jack, Giovanni when to shake Jazz's hand vigorously. "Jasmine, right? You were three last time I saw you! Thought I was a grizzly bear…" Jazz blushed and Danny choked with laugher besides her, drawing the man's attention to him, "Ah, Daniel! You were still in diapers last time I set eyes on ya!"

"Uh…" Danny said, going a violent shade of red. Valerie laughed at his embarrassment and Raven shook her head in amused exasperation.

"Those two aren't yours, though, are they?" Giovanni asked Jack, "Danny's girlfriends or something,"

"Girl FRIENDS!" Danny said loudly before Jack got the chance to embarrass him further, "As in friends who happen to be girls, no more, no less,"

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say," Giovanni said carelessly as Valerie and Raven roared with laugher. "Anyways, come on, I'll introduce you to all the other kids before I take your parents to visit with the other ghost hunters," Valerie looked disappointed momentarily before shaking it off and following the man obediently with the rest of the group.

_'I guess I'll just wait until later to grill the adults…'_ She thought reasonably as Giovanni led them to two cabins in a large clearing, both alive with the sounds of laugher and conversation.

"That's where all the adults will be," Giovanni told them, pointing to the cabin on the right, "And over there's where the kids 'hang out' or whatever you call it nowadays… You shouldn't be afraid to come over if you need something, but mostly the kids keep to themselves. Something about it being less embarrassing, according to Katie…"

Jazz and Danny exchanged knowing grins.

Giovanni entered the cabin first, holding the door open for everyone else who followed without hesitation. None of them noticed the small contraption with the blinking red light fixed over the door…

…At least not until a wailing much like a fire alarm went off followed by a female voice.

_**"GHOST ALERT! GHOST ALERT! GHOST ALERT! GHOST ALERT!"**_

Danny and Jazz froze up as one, paling visibly as Raven and Valerie yelped in surprise and covered their ears.

"TURN IT OFF!" One of the teens yelled angrily. Cringing, Giovanni raced over to the device and pressed a button, silencing the alarm.

"What happen?" A woman's voice demanded as a crowd of worried, tense and extremely weird looking adults came to the door, "Where's the ghost?"

"Everything's fine, Mary-Ann," Giovanni sighed, "It was just a malfunction."

"Right, malfunction!" Jazz repeated with a nervous laugh as she saw some of the weapons and detection devices in the adults hands, discreetly moving to stand in front of her brother.

"Imagine that," A pretty girl with short blonde hair said sarcastically, glaring at Giovanni. The man sighed.

"Now Katie…" He said in a tired voice.

"Don't start, Dad," Katie snapped, "You know your junk never works!"

"Lay off, Blondie," Another girl snapped, (this one with long black hair) coming up along side of the Fenton siblings. "A lot of ghost tech is experimental, of course there are gonna be trial and errors." Katie rolled her eyes and huffed before turning back to the conversation she'd been having before the alarm. The new girl eyed Danny curiously, "Though it's weird it didn't go off until you came in…"

"It's probably nothing!" Jazz said loudly, "Trail and Error, just like you said!" the girl raised an eyebrow before turning back to Danny and brightening suddenly.

"Hey I recognize you!" She announced.

"You do?" Danny asked, surprised. After all, Danny Fenton never did anything extraordinary to speak of…

"You're that kid who organized that big assault to take down the ghost that kidnapped all the adults of Amity!" The girl continued, "Danny Fenton, right?"

"Ah, yeah," Danny said, blushing, "And that was really no big deal."

"Taking a bunch of inexperience high school kids and teaching them to used advanced ghost hunting equipment and organizing a rescue assault without any adult aid at fourteen years old," The girl said dryly, "Right, that's really something anybody could do…"

"Yeah, but it didn't work," Danny said, "Phantom's the one who did the rescuing, not me,"

"Yeah, well Phantom's a spirit from another plane of existence." The girl reminded him, "Hell, he's even a level up of most ghosts, kinda hard to compete with that…"

"Daniel, Jasmine, this is my other daughter, Nephritides," Giovanni said.

"Call me Nene," She said, making a face. "Nephritides is a little hard to pronounce."

"Nene, these are Jasmine and Daniel Fenton, the children of the Ghost Hunters from Amity. And I don't think you've introduced your friends, Daniel…?"

"Danny and Jazz, please," Jazz said, smiling, "And there are Valerie Grey and Rae Venn. It's ah, nice to meet to, Nene."

"I'll get over to the party," Giovanni said, "and remember, if you kids see anything…"

"Relax, Dad," A boy near the back called out, grinning, "We'll tell you if a ghost shows!" A few kids laughed at that as Giovanni left.

"My brother, Erik," Nene said, rolling her eyes. "He's the oldest. Then me, then Katie."

"So what amount of time separates you three?" Jazz asked curiously. The three looked to close together as far as age went…

"Seventeen," Nene said casually. Jazz's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"Seventeen years?" She asked.

"Nah, seventeen minutes. We're triplets. Katie and I used to be physically identical before I dyed my hair black and she dyed hers blonde. It's the only thing we've got in common, though."

"So, what are we supposed to do around here?" Valerie asked, crossing her arms.

"Hang out while the adults blather on about ghosts," A new boy said, walking over. "I'm Nathan, son of the couple responsible for the Freakfest this year,"

"Lay off, Nathan," Nene snapped. "What our parents do it respectable, and a lot cooler then the other boring jobs out there."

"Right," Nathan said sarcastically, "Because who doesn't like waking up to find out the ecto-goo in the fridge exploded all over the food."

"Or that your mother tried to cook with ecto-energies again and the food's trying to eat you," Jazz added.

"Or that your parents set up ghost detection devices at every entrance of the school." Another girl piped up. Danny shook his head as kid after kid listed off the things their parents had done.

"I think Jazz just found her new best friends," Danny said dryly. Valerie and Raven laughed.

"Well one thing's for sure," Raven said, smiling. "This is going to be a very interesting party…"

* * *

**WoM- _I don't have time to write anything else. I've gotta get to my friend's sweet 16 in half an hour. _(And hope she appreciates it, since I'm even wearing a skirt for her… _'cringes and shudders'_) _Catch y'all later!_**

* * *

**Thank to;**

puppyface

Light Dragon SunsSong

epobbp

Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse

hikari lady

ShiroandFubuki

Ant Crown

The Halfa Wannabe

Paul Powell

Seeker Carter

DannyPhantomFAN#1

Samantha-Girl Scout

I Brake For Ghosts

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

OldNick

Missmeliss4251

Titan6

Tetsukon

The Unknown Alias

cheetahs-speret

Shiva the Sarcastic

BratCat

kdm13

ur1crazedupfruitloop

lilnovelist

Firefury

Ghost Writer's Assistant

conan98002

Firehedgehog

IwuvMyKenshyPoo

midnightgoth9

Krystal

enigmatic penguin

Petitio Principii

littlekittykat

EvilAnimeGoodness

Danaphantom

shojobutterfly

JPElles

Spirit of Zurvan

Invader Johnny

SummersSixEcho

AirGirl Phantom

Lunaqua

tizamiki

DSK

Anime Chick009

* * *

**Next update;** _February 4th_

_**See you then!**_

* * *

ATTENTION!

****

As I'm sure most of you are already aware, Nick is threatening to cancel Danny Phantom after just three seasons (for the official statement from Butch, go here http/ butchhartman. com/ forumIII/ index. php? act ST&f 2&t 7072&st 0# entry170905 **_without the spaces)_**

http/ butchhartman. com/ forumIII/ index. php? act ST&f 2&t 7072&st 0# entry170905 ****

Naturally, I'm one of the people fighting to keep Danny Phantom running, so I beg you to send in letters with my own to the following address;

Cyma Zharghami or **Marjorie Cohn **

Nickelodeon

or 

1515 Broadway

New York, New York

10036

USA

Attention: Programming.

And to sign the petitions below (Again, without the spaces);

http/ www. petitionspot. com/ petitions/ SaveDannyplease

http/ www. petitionspot. com/ petitions/ fightfordanny

http/ www. petitionspot. com/ petitions/ DannyPhantom


	11. Child of the Hunt

**WoM- _I can't start any stories this week for some reason!_ 'makes face.'_ Probably has something to do with the new story that's whining for attention in the back of my head that I have absolutely no time for…_ 'grumbles.' _You know, the days really outta be longer or something, there's way too much to do in them and nowhere near enough time!_**

**Also, I've been anguishing over the fact that nobody seems to know where Nephritides' name comes from 'crying' I feel like such a lame, history-obsessee now… 'pouts' Really, what are they teaching you kids in school nowadays?**

* * *

"Doctor to patient: I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you are not a hypochondriac." 

_**-Unknown**_

* * *

_"Well?" Ember snapped, glowering at Walker, "Any more bright ideas, Sheriff Stupid?" Walker glared back at the pop star._

_"Watch it, Missy," He growled. "The punk might've gotten away, but if you cross me enough then I'll make sure the Haunters are the least of your worried," Ember scowled, defiance flashing through her eyes at the threat._

_"Cool it!" Johnny snapped. "Shouldn't we be thinking of a plan or something?"_

_"I still say we should just tell Danny what's going on," Kitty piped up. "If we explain everything to him under peaceful terms, I'm sure he'll understand and help us the best he can."_

_"Yeah, right," Spectra snorted. "And why would he do that, considering all the times we've tried to kill him?"_

_"Because he doesn't strike me as the type to refuse someone who needs help," Kitty said defensively. "No matter how much he hates them."_

_"That's too uncertain for my tastes." Walker said. "I still say we lock him up and throw away the key!"_

_"That's your response to everything," Ember said, sounding annoyed, "Can't you come up with a new idea every once in a while?"_

_"Hey, I'm the one who made the kid Public Enemy Number One, ain't I?"_

_"Whoop-dee-doo," Ember said sarcastically, "That lasted for like a month before people started loving the kid."_

_"And it just made if harder for us to move around among the humans," Spectra complained loudly._

_"Look, shouldn't we get back to the problem here?" Ember asked irritably "We'll worry about the rest of this stuff after we deal with dipstick and the Haunters."_

_"Why won't anyone listen to me?" Kitty asked irritably, "I was around the guy more then any of the rest of you, I should know these sort of things!"_

_"You also don't know anything about holding your own in a fight," Walker sneered, "Here's some advice, little girl, leave the plans to the people who know what they're talking about," Kitty shot the warden an evil look._

_"Johnny," She said, turning to her boyfriend, "Did you-?"_

_"Just listen to him, Kitty," Johnny sighed, "We don't need anymore problems." Kitty scowled._

_"Fine!" She snapped, flying off in a huff._

_"Now then," Spectra said, "Should we get back to business?"_

_'Danny Fenton is Danny Phantom…'_

It was pretty obvious, now that she really thought about it. The appearances, the voices, even the names to some extent… everything matched and led to only one conclusion, shocking as it was.

_'Danny **Fenton **is Danny **Phantom**…'_

Still, Paulina knew there was no way that most of the people in town knew about it. Even his parent's couldn't have known, considering all the times they shot him down with ecto-guns.

The two losers he's always hung out with probably knew. They always covered for him whenever he was gone, and Paulina knew she'd seen them flying with Danny once or twice.

_'Danny _**FENTON**_ is Danny _**PHANTOM**_…'_

His sister probably knew too, she was always defending the ghost boy and hovering over Danny over protectively. Paulina had always found the behavior obsessive and weird, but now it made perfect sence.

_'She didn't want anyone else to know,' _Paulina realized, _'And she was scared because he was always fighting. She didn't want him getting hurt too badly because of the ghosts…'_

Paulina sighed. The question now, though, was what would she do about it. She could go straight to the media and reveal him… leave an anonymous tip off since she was a minor and catch the boy by surprise enough to let his natural awkward and shy nature do the rest of the work for her…

_'No way,'_ Paulina thought firmly. _'I said I'd be Phantom's girlfriend and I will be. If I tell anybody, there will be other girls all over him and that will only make things harder.'_ Not that she really had to worry about competition, she was **_Paulina_** after all, but still, why make things harder then they had to be?

She could tell him that she knew. Blackmailing a guy into dating her way beneath her, but if he felt she was a threat to his secret, he'd probably try to stick closer to her. After they'd been dating for a while, maybe Paulina could even convince him to come forward and admit he was the town hero.

_'Unless his parents have some crazy invention to wipe out someone's memories or something,'_ Paulina realized, making a face. She wouldn't put it past the Fentons, after all. And she didn't want anything, ghost human or otherwise, screwing around with her head. She'd had more then enough of that since this whole ghost business started.

Being 'overshadowed' or whatever four or five times (At least, that was the amount of times she'd had that weird spacey feeling and a lapse of memories) was more then enough in her book.

_'Then what can I do…?' _Paulina sighed as she finished off her diet soda, putting the cup down and drawing her knees closer to her body. _'I mean, how do you approach something like this with a guy? How are you supposed to gain their trust in this sort of situation, especially with Valerie and that Rae Venn girl hovering around…'_

"So we strike when he returns?" Paulina jerk slightly in surprise at the semi-familiar voice, frowning in irritation at the interruption. She turned to snap at the person who was on the other side of her tree only to freeze then hastily hide herself from sight again.

_'That's not normal…' _She thought, peeking around the tree again.

Standing there was a strange girl she'd never met, talking to what looked like a glowing green blob to the popular teen. The girl herself looked normal enough. Blonde hair pulled up in pigtails, a black miniskirt and tube top with a black leather jacket with silver zippers and chains.

Black boots laced up to her thighs and a black choker tied around her throat, giving her a very threatening look. The thing that most weirded Paulina out, though, was the black whip attached to the girl's hip.

_'Dominatrix much?'_ She thought sarcastically.

**_"Yes,"_** A male voice answered back, **_"Make sure the trap is set for him. This Danny Phantom is a powerful ghost and we can't take the chance of losing him,"_**

"I still don't see why we don't act now," The girl complained. "It's not like those pathetic hunters he associates with are any threat to us."

**_"Maybe not, but I don't want to confirm our return until we have the boy in our possession. Besides, I want to look in more on the ghost hunter who was fighting at the fair."_**

"The scary chick in red and black?" The girl clarified. Paulina found it ironic that she would call anyone scary.

**_"I have to admit, I'm impressed with her abilities…"_**

"You mean you're crushing on her," The girl smirked, "Man Trent, I never thought I'd see the day…"

"Remember your place," The voice growled back, "And make sure you bring her in as well. Alive and unharmed. We might be able to convince her to join us."

"What about that Teen Titan, Raven?" The girl pressed. Paulina eyebrow kicked up.

_'Raven from the Teen Titans? The anti-social one in desperate need of a tan? What does she have to do with…?'_ Paulina froze, biting her lip to keep in a groan_. 'Rae Venn. Raven. How does somebody MISS that?'_ Paulina mentally sighed then stiffen, _'Wait. Then that means… at the fair…'_ The popular girl's eyes narrowed. _'Why that little-!'_

"Do as you see fit with her," Trent responded, "Just make sure she won't get in our way."

"Roger," The girl responded. "Kayla over and out!" Paulina watched with narrow eyes as the green glowy-thingy dissipated and the girl walked away, apparently in a good mood as she swing her hips and hummed happily to herself.

That's when the idea his Paulina.

_'Maybe there's a way I can deal with my little problem after all…'_ She thought, smirking.

* * *

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 11; Child of the Hunt _

* * *

"-Then she shot him with an ecto-gun and made his hair fall out!" the girl finished, exasperation clear in her tone. Around her, everyone laughed and shook their heads. "He was hospitalized for a week and still avoids me at school."

"You think that's bad?" Jazz rolled her eyes, "You should see some of the stuff MY dates have to go through. Especially since they have to deal with Mom, Dad AND Danny!" Between the three, though, Jazz knew for a fact that the guys would take her parents ten times over if it meant never having to deal with her little brother in 'overprotective mode' again. And Jazz made sure he knew she knew it in the dark look she cast his way.

"What, you're still mad about that?" Danny asked mildly. Jazz scowled.

"I don't care if Harold was trying to feel me up, Danny, that's no excuse to set a 600 pound gorilla on him!"

"Don't exaggerate, Jazz," Danny said, rolling his eyes, "Delilah's only 400 pounds. Her mate, Jeremy is 600."

"Danny!"

"Nice." Nathan laughed. "Brave and creative. That's an interesting combination in a kid your age."

"Unfortunately," Valerie said dryly, grinning teasingly at Danny. "Of course, he's also something of a magnet for trouble back home." Danny blushed.

"Oh?" Nathan laughed, "You don't look like a bad boy to me… What'd you do?"

"Nothing," Danny muttered, his blush darkening. Jazz and Valerie, on the other hand jumped all over the subject.

"Starting a food fight, skipping detention for starting a food fight…" Jazz started.

"…Losing his pants three times in one week, sneaking into a zoo after hours…" Valerie continued.

"…Disrupting a class assembly, damaging school property…"

"…Trashing the school counselor's office, pulling a fire alarm when there was no fire…"

"…Skipping out on a mandatory cram session, breaking curfew during the mass grounding act…"

"…fighting on school grounds, battering that stupid family baby project… though that one was technically my fault…"

"…Being dad's son, skipping school…"

"…Locking Mr. Lancer in a janitor's closet, throwing a party when his family was out…"

"…Sanity issues, finding the answer to the-!"

"THEY GET IT ALREADY!" Danny yelled, glaring at the two who grinned back.

"Come on, Fenton," Valerie laughed, "We're only messing with you!"

"Yeah, Danny," Jazz agreed, grinning, "You keep like interesting!"

"As if having a pair of ghost hunters for parents doesn't do that already?" Katie asked, sounding amused. Valerie frowned slightly when she saw the look Katie was not giving Danny, "on the other hand, I think it's cool how you did all that. Everybody loves a rebel…"

Valerie glared pointedly at the girl, moving closer to Danny (Much to Raven's growing amusement.)

"Okay, Kids!" Jack Fenton shouted as he came into the room, "It's lights out time!" The kids groaned but obediently left, knowing they had to prepare for the coming day of ghost-based speeches and activities.

As Raven fell into step beside Danny as they followed Jack Fenton to their tent, though, she couldn't help on last question that she knew would haunt her if she never asked.

"Sanity issues?" She repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"…Shut up."

* * *

"Demon's Eye, huh…?" Danny sighed, frowning at the object that now glittered in the moonlight when he held it up. 

It certainly didn't look like anything special. Just a weird red marble. Still, Danny got a weird feeling from holding it, like there was more to the necklace then met the eye…

"Hey, aren't you that Fenton kid?"

Jumping, Danny wheeled around to come face to face with an adult he'd never met before. Wide-eyed, the pale boy froze.

"…uhh…" He said, uncertain of what to say or do.

"It's light out, kid, how'd you get out of your tent?" The guy asked.

"I uh, had to use the bathroom!" Danny said lamely, hoping the man would by it. He seemed to with the way his shoulders relaxed.

"Well, make sure to get back when you're done, kid, these forests are haunted and we don't need you getting overshadowed." The man said seriously.

Danny almost laughed.

"I'll try, sir," Danny said politely. The man left Danny to do his business, and the young half ghost shook his head.

"So you guys finished him off without any problems?" Danny blinked at the semi-familiar voice, turning this way and that to see where it was coming from.

_"Yeah,"_ A male voice answered back, _"He fried my circuitry, though, and messed up BB pretty bad."_

"Well, hopefully I won't be too much longer…" The first voice sighed.

_"How you holding up, anyways?"_ The second voice asked as Danny started in the direction the voices were coming from, _"I mean, you're not all alone over there, are you?"_

"I've made some interesting friends," voice one said in bemusement, "And right now I'm at a Ghost Hunting Camp Out, but I'm really eager to get back home…"

_"Well, we'd be more then happy to have you back,"_ voice two said. _"Especially since now the bad guys know we're on hero short."_

Just then Danny's ghost sense went off and he trust to stop only to lose his balance and go crashing down the hill.

"Ow," Danny groaned.

"Danny?" The boy blinked, looking up to see a very surprised Rae.

"What are you doing out ere?" They both asked at the same time.

"I was going to the bathroom," Danny said at once.

"I was just getting some air." Rae said almost as quickly.

"Oh," Danny looked around, "Were you, uh… talking to anyone?"

"Of course now," Rae said, "What made you think that?"

"I thought I heard to voices just now…" Danny explained frowning at Rae's flinch.

"Well, I didn't hear anything," She said, "Let's go. We need to get back to camp…" Danny yelped in surprise when Rae grabbed his arm and dragged him away, his eyes narrowing when he hear a giggle…

"Think you can go on ahead without me?" He asked, "There's something I need to take care of,"

"Suit yourself," Raven shrugged. As soon as she left, Danny turned into a ghost and turned around to glare at the trees surrounding him.

"I know you're out there," He called out, "And I don't wanna fight you, but I will if you hurt anyone here. Now show yourself!"

There was a short silence before an excited squeal, and seconds later a female ghost with bright baby blue eyes and vivid red hair popped up right in front of Danny.

"You're the half ghost!" She said in a hyperactive, almost fan girl-ish way, "Wow! I never thought I'd meet someone so famous! I'm Gem!"

_'…Huh?'_

* * *

**WoM- 'jumping _around' I GOT POCKY!_ 'grinning widely' _IlikePocky!DoyoulikePocky?Pockyisfunfunfun!Imeanit'ssugaryandchocolatyandreallyaddictiveanddidyouevernoticeyhowyoucanneveronlyhaveonepiece?IcaneatawholeboxinlessthenanhourbutthenmymomgetsmadbecauseshesayspockymakesmereallyhyperbutIdon'tthinkpockymakesmeanymorehyperthenusualdoyou? _'giggles'_ WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!_**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Missmeliss4251

Ant Crown

dramaqueen07

DarkDragonQueen

Shiva the Sarcastic

JPElles

Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet

I Brake For Ghosts

Seeker Carter

Spirit of Zurvan

Light Dragon SunsSong

Firehedgehog

epobbp

shojobutterfly

Darth Frodo

Bermudian Chaos

jaellister

DannyPhantomFAN#1

kingdomhearts222

AirGirl Phantom

midnightgoth9

Ghost Writer's Assistant

The Unknown Alias

Just call me crazy!

JPElles

conan98002

puppyface

Samantha-Girl Scout

kdm13

Asilla

BratCat

Invader Johnny

Tetsukon

Petitio Principii

phantomshadowdragon

Jak of All Trades

* * *

**Next update;** _February 11th_

_**See you then!**_

* * *

ATTENTION!

****

As I'm sure most of you are already aware, Nick is threatening to cancel Danny Phantom after just three seasons.

****

Naturally, I'm one of the people fighting to keep Danny Phantom running, so I beg you to send in letters with my own to the following address;

Cyma Zharghami or **Marjorie Cohn **

Nickelodeon

1515 Broadway

New York, New York

10036

USA

Attention: Programming.

And to sign the petitions I have posted on my profile won't let me up the link here.)

****

And don't forget to spread the word! With your help, we can save Danny!


	12. Ghost Central

**WoM- 'blinking back at the end of the last chapter.' _Erm… That's the last time I update after eating an entire box of Pocky. For you poor, sheltered souls who did not know what pocky was, it's an extremely addictive Japanese candy that comes in a couple different flavors_ (Chocolate and Strawberry are most common.) _and if you eat it enough, the mere mention of the word can have you bouncing off the walls for hours at end. If you've got a Meijers nearby, I know that ours sells it in the foreign food esle. If not, I really dunno what to tell ya…_**

* * *

"_The most I can do for my friend is simply be his friend."_

_**-Henry David Thoreau**_

* * *

_"…So we're all in agreement?" Walker asked as box ghost finished adding his signature to the paper Spectra had drawn up (Having a minor in law and a longer fuse then the Warden of the Ghost Zone,) for all of them to sign._

_"Yeah, Yeah…" Ember grumbled. "Man, who died and elected you King?"_

_"Kings aren't elected, Sweetie," Spectra said absently. "Then again, if you'd attended school past the four grade, you'd know that, wouldn't you?" Ember's eyes narrowed at the jab, and she scowled back at Spectra's smirk._

_"Nice one," The rocker said sarcastically. "Did one of those high school girls you baby sat teach you that, or did you actually think of something on your own for once?"_

_"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Johnny said, stepping between the two girls. "Easy ladies! If you wanna fight, make sure it's something worth fighting over. Like me!" Ember and Spectra gave the biker twin looks of disgust._

_"How Kitty puts up with you, I'll never know…" Ember said dryly._

_"Speaking of which, where is she?" Poindexter asked, glancing around curiously, "I haven't seen her since she went storming off after you guys told her to can it." Disapproval was heavy in the dead teen's voice. His era had never looked too kindly upon treating girls so disrespectfully…_

_"Who cares?" Bullet asked._

_"Hey!" Johnny said with a glare._

_"She's your girlfriend, pal." Technus reminded him, "So it's your problem it she got herself caught by the Haunters." Johnny paled at that._

_"Aw, man!" he moaned, "I didn't think of that!" I'd better-!"_

_"Nighty-Night."_

_Before any of the ghosts could react to the new voice, a brilliant flood of light flashed. When it faded, all of the ghost floated unconscious where they fell. Kayla giggled loudly as her men flew out to gather the fallen ghost._

_"Too easy…" She said with a smirk, glancing over at the picture she had posted to the dashboard of her Specter Plane in an almost affectionate way. Reaching out, she traced the face on the picture with one of her long, blood red nails. "Hope you're a little more fun, Danny Phantom…"_

"Aw, come on, 'Lissa!" Tucker laughed. "That's not fair!" Melissa giggled, ducking away from her boyfriend and flashing him a shy smile.

"I promised I wouldn't tell…" She told him.

"And you'd keep a secret from your one true love?" Tucker said, feigning pain.

"You do," Melissa said with a pointed smile. Tucker looked alarmed for a second, and guilt flash across his face before he covered it with a nervous laugh.

"What?" He said shrilly, "Me? A secret? What makes you think that? You know I can't keep a secret, Melissa!"

"True," Melissa admitted, "That's what confused me at first… but it's not your secret, is it? And if it isn't, it has to be Danny's,"

"…Uhh…" Tucker was starting to panic, not wanting to lie to the girl he liked nor to endanger the trust his best friend had in him.

"When you tell me what you two are really off doing when you study, I'll tell you my secret," Melissa promised with a smile. She knew Tucker wouldn't give away Danny's secret, and therefore she didn't have to give away Raven's.

"That's low, 'Lis!" Tucker complained. Melissa smiled back.

"I learned from the best," She reminded him, pecking him on the cheek shyly. Tucker grinned at her, And opened his mouth to say something…

"You two behaving in here?"

Melissa blinked in mild surprise when she suddenly found her boyfriend on the other side of the room, looking like a kid who'd just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Yes sir!" Tucker responded, not tearing his wide eyes away from Lance, Melissa's 22 year old brother and guardian. Melissa bit back a giggle, knowing that Tucker was the only person to ever call Lance 'Sir.' This was mostly due to the fact that her brother, who went to the gym five days a week, could probably find a way to stuff Tucker into a mailbox with ease.

"Good," Lance said with a pointed glare at the younger boy before he left. Tucker gulped as the door shut behind him, and Melissa couldn't help but laugh.

"He's a nice guy, you know," She giggled.

"Maybe to you," Tucker mumbled, making a face, "Every time he looks at me, he's trying to figure out which of my bones to break first. You can tell from his eyes, Mel!"

"He likes you," Melissa said, rolling her eyes and smiling at him, "And he trusts you, too."

"Probably because we all know he can twist me like a pretzel…" Tucker grumbled. Still, he smiled at Melissa and hugged her, grinning as she rested her head on his shoulder.

_'Gotta admit though,' _He thought to himself, _'This would be worth it.'_

* * *

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 12; Ghost Central_

* * *

"…Uuh…"

Danny honestly didn't know what else to say, gaping at the girl in front of him in a mixture of shock and bewilderment. After all, he'd never gotten that reaction from a ghost before…

"Hey, what are you doing way out here, anyways?" Gem asked, "I mean, you're territory's in Amity, right?"

"Huh?" Danny shook off his shock the best he could, "Wait, you know me?"

"EVERYBODY knows you," Gem said dryly, rolling her eyes. "You're the guy who puts the rouges in their place. You ended Walker's reign of terror AND you defeated Pariah Dark."

"Rouges?" Danny repeated.

"Yeah, the dangerous power hungry ghosts, like Ember and Skulker and such." Gem said, circling Danny so he had to twist and turn to keep her in his sight. "Most of 'em are banned from Ghost Central, so they started to wreak as much havoc in the human world as they could. At least until you came along,"

"Ghost Central?" Danny asked, his eyebrow kicking up questioningly "And I don't get it, all the other ghosts hate me. So why wouldn't you guys?"

"It's basically our Utopia," Gem shrugged, "A place for peaceful ghosts to live (For lack of a better word) and work without worrying about humans or rouges like we have to outside of the city limits. You've never been?"

"The Fenton Portal's in the Fourth Quadrant on the Third Level," Danny explained, using Clockwork's tutorials of how the Ghost Zone mapped out.

"Really?" Gem cocked her head. "Well, we're at the Joining point of all the Quadrants. In all honesty, if you go through your Portal and head to Quadrant Two in a straight line, you can't miss it. Just follow the bright flashing lights and the sounds of the party,"

"Party?" Danny cringed, "Man, I'm starting to feel like a parrot…"

"A lot of the ghosts in Ghost in the Ghost Zone are still pretty young," Gem explained. "I guess because the more life you had when you died, the more you feel like you've been cheated outta something, you know? Anyways, since we've got nothing else to do, we just party it up in the Level Three level of Ghost Central, Elysium."

"If this place is so great," Danny started with a frown, "Why are you here?"

"I wanted to check out all the ghost hunters," Gem explained, "I've never seen a real live ghost hunter before, and since this Forest is part of our human territory…"

"You wanted to see a ghost hunter." The half ghost repeated incredulously before he sighed in exasperation. "Did it ever occur to you that ghost hunters… oh, I dunno… **_hunt ghosts_**?"

"Well when you put it that way, of course it sounds like a stupid thing to do," Gem said, making a face. "But hey, what's death if you don't live a little?"

"… You know, the scary thing is, that actually makes sense to me…" Danny shook his head. "Anyways, I'd better get back to my tent…"

"What?" Gem asked, flying to block the boy's way, "Aw, come on! I've never met a celebrity before!"

"…Celebrity?" Danny repeated before he shook his head, "Look, it's really, really great that you think I'm cool, but I'm nobody special, okay?"

"Oh please!" Gem said with a dry look. "You're a teenaged half-ghost superhero who managed to single-handedly defeat some of the most powerful ghosts known to man, If that's not cool, I don't know what is!"

_'Wow,'_ Danny thought in dry amusement. _'I've come a long way from being 'some creepy little boy with creepy little powers…''_

"Hey, I know!" Gem said brightly, "Why don't you come with me to Ghost Central right now? I can introduce you to everyone!" Danny was startled by the excited remark from the ghost in front of him, mostly because he barely knew her.

"I dunno…" The half ghost said doubtfully, backing away slightly. Before he could make a break for it, Gem grabbed his wrist and yanked him deeper into the forest.

"Come on!" She said cheerfully, "It'll be fun! Besides, there are some ghosts there who say they know you!"

"There are?" Danny asked, a little wary now. After all, he hadn't met too many ghosts he claimed to be friends with…

_'But maybe this could be useful,'_ Danny mused, playing with the Demon's Eye again, _'Maybe someone there can tell me what's going on. And what the heck this thing is…' _

* * *

"Where's Danny?"

Raven glanced up at her tentmate's question, having just settled into the bed. Valerie responded with a cool, wary look of her own.

The Fentons had brought three FentonWorks-shaped tents along for the trip. One was for Maddie and Jack (Married couple), one was for Danny and Jazz (Siblings), and the last was for Valerie and Raven (Leftovers.)

"How did you know he left?" Raven asked.

"I heard him trip over some log when he was heading out to the woods," Valerie answered, rolling her eyes and smiling softly, "That's Danny for you, though…"

"I thought he had a little more grace then that," Raven said, remembering the incident when she first met Danny. The way he caught himself before they both ended up on the floor suggested he had some kind of dexterity, no matter how raw and untrained it was.

"Only when he wants to," Valerie said with a chuckled. "Then again, Danny can usually do pretty much anything he puts his heart into. The problem is getting him enthused about it. It's not that he's lazy or anything, just…"

"Distracted?" Raven supplied. She'd noticed it, too. Danny always seemed to be somewhere else, and he seemed to be really tired a lot…

"Exactly." Valerie shook her head. "Sometimes I get the feeling he's hiding something from me, but I can't tell what,"

"It's probably nothing big," Raven said absently, "Danny's too normal to be keeping any extreme secrets,"

"Good point," Valerie chuckled. "I mean, between ghost hunting parents and a basket case for a sister, Danny's the most normal Fenton there is,"

"Basket case?" Raven laughed. "Jazz?"

"She gets really obsessive over everything." Valerie explained, "Homework, her GPA, her parents job… she worse about Danny though. I think Sam and Tucker got to her, too. For about the first month after Danny and I really started hanging out, she'd get really weird every time I was around. After that, though, she warmed up."

"Who's Sam?" Raven asked, knowing she'd heard the name before.

"One of Danny's friends," Valerie said in an even voice, telling the Titan this wasn't a subject the Ghost hunter wished to discuss.

_'I'm willing to bet that either this Sam person doesn't have completely platonic feelings towards Danny or vice versa…' _Raven thought dryly. Just then, Valerie stood up, heading for the flap of the tent.

"I'm gonna see if I can find Danny," She announced. "These woods have a weird vibe to them and He's been gone way too long for my tastes,"

_'So she can feel it, too,' _Raven mused, _'These forests are a link into a portion of the Spirit World, and a powerful link at that.'_ It was possible there was ghost activity there, which was probably the reason the ghost hunters selected it for their camp out. Suddenly Raven wondered if leaving Danny behind had been the best idea…

"Want me to come with you?" She asked, guilt gnawing through her at the simple mistake.

"Nah," Valerie responded instantly, not wanting the girl around if there was a ghost attack, "I'll be fine on my own."

"You just said these forests are dangerous," Raven reminded her pointedly. "It's not smart to go out alone when you know there's danger."

"What horror movie do you think we're in?" Valerie snapped, "I can take care of myself, okay?"

"What are you two yelling about?" Raven and Valerie both turned to find a groggy Jazz at the flap of their tent, giving them a half-coherent stern glare, "Do you guys have any idea what time it is?"

"We're just talking," Raven said, "Sorry to wake you up." Valerie, on the other hand, cut straight to the point.

"Danny's been gone for almost half an hour," Jazz frowned, all signs of exhaustion gone from her face.

"He what?" She asked.

"I wanted to go out and look for him." Valerie explained, "One of the ghost hunters said earlier that these woods are haunted, I wanted to make sure he was okay," Jazz flinched slightly.

"Ah, I'm sure he's fine," She said, "Those ghost hunters here will claim a toilet's haunted. They really don't know what they're talking about half the time. Just go to sleep, I'm sure Danny will be back soon,"

"But-!" Valerie started to protest.

"Tell you what, Valerie, if he's not back in another half hour, then we'll go looking for him," Jazz said diplomatically.

"But it might be too late by then!" Valerie snapped, glaring. Jazz didn't know ghosts like she did, even if her parents were hunters.

_'I scanned myself beforehand,'_ She thought, _'These woods ARE haunted, it's just that we can't pinpoint the ghost.'_

"I'm sure he's fine, Val," Jazz said, wiggling back out of the tent, "Danny can take care of himself, you know. Now please go to sleep." Valerie glared at the flap after it's fallen in Jazz's retreat.

"Oh, like she's one to talk," Valerie snorted dryly. That statement gave her pause to think though.

_'Why isn't Jazz more worried about Danny…?'_

* * *

"Welcome to Ghost Central, a spirit haven if there ever was one!" Gem announced with a flourish, sweeping her arms out so that Danny had to duck to avoid getting whapped across the face.

"Cool…" He said, looking around him.

Ghost Central Level One was pretty much a giant grassy hill where one could sit and look to the sky, which was actually different points in the human realm that played out like movies. A few ghosts were doing just that. Some in large groups of friends, some as coupled cuddling close and some on their solitary.

"This is just the in between spot from the Mortal World to the Ghost Zone," Gem explained, dragging Danny away. "Over here is the portal to Level Two, where we do all our shopping. The food joints and a bunch of other stuff is there, too. That's where Flair and Jonathan are. Flair runs The Ghost Animal Shelter and Jonathan is an old blacksmith who used to make a killing making swords and stuff back in the 1800s… Ah, metaphorically speaking, of course."

"Okay…" Danny said, blinking. He frowned when he noticed some people were staring at him and whispering to the ghosts nearest to them. Some were even following him… "Uh, Gem, are you sure it's okay for me to be here?"

"Sure, Danny!" Gem said cheerfully, "Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just…" Danny flinched slightly. "I think some people are staring." Frowning, Gem turned until she saw what he was talking about.

"Oh," She said flatly, "Them. Hang on…" The ghost girl took a deep breath, "BACK OFF! He's with me right now, and he doesn't want you guys bugging him, alright?" There were loud groans and glares from some of the ghosts who'd been following them, which was all a confused Danny caught before Gem more or less shoved him into a portal.

"What was that about…?" Danny asked as soon as they reach the ground of the Second Level of Ghost Central.

"I told you before you're a celebrity around here," Gem reminded him, "Stick close. A lot of these chumps are scared of me but if they catch you alone there'll be a fan mob before you can say Sexual Harassment,"

"Wait, what?" Danny asked, starting to get wary, "Maybe this s a bad idea…"

"Nonsense!" Gem grinned, "just stick close and there won't be any problems!"

'Easy for you to say…' Danny thought dryly as Gem led him into 'Puppy Plus; Ghost Pets Who Need New Homes!'

"Flair?" Gem called out, "Flair! I've gotta someone here for you to meet!"

"It's not another loser you're trying to hook me up with, is it?" A female voice called out suspiciously, "Because if it is, I swear I'll take this pooper scooper and shove it up your-!"

"No!" Gem said with a hasty glance at Danny, "Besides, I think this one's a little out of your league, sweetie,"

'Since when am I out of ANYONE'S league?' Danny thought, bewildered.

"'Out of my league?'" Flair repeated, sounding insulted. Danny could tell she was coming closer from the volume of her voice. "Since when is any guy out of my- Oh, crap…" This last part was added when the girl stopped dead upon seeing Danny, color rising to her face before she turned to force a smile at Gem. "Gem… Sweetie… Can I see you in private for a second?"

"Depends," Gem said, "Am I coming out of his conversation with my afterlife still intact?" Flair's smile became more forced.

"Excuse us," She said to Danny before hauling Gem away by a wrist. Danny blinked when he watched them go, a door closing behind them. Second later loud, indistinguishable yelling was heard from behind the door, making the half ghost laugh to himself.

_'This place just gets weirder and weirder…' _He thought dryly, leaning against a wall.

That's when he was tackled to the ground.

Alarmed and under the impression that he'd been deceived, Danny twisted around to face his attacker only to stop with his jaw gaping.

"CUJO?" He shouted incredulously. On his chest, the small dog barked happily, wagging his tail and licking Danny's face vigorously. "ACK! Down boy! Down! No, bad dog! BAD!"

"You know him?"

Turning, Danny saw that Flair and Gem had returned from their conversation (Gem nursing a large bump on her head and pouting slightly.)

"Yeah," Danny sighed, "Thanks to this guy, I've got a ghost hunter on my butt who actually knows what she's doing." Danny glared at the dog, but it lacked any conviction, and Cujo licked his face again loudly, making the half ghost yelp. Flair laughed.

"Interesting," She said, "For the most part, this one's been pretty incompliant to me and most of our staff, he must really like you… you called him Cujo, right?"

"I've got a friend who sucked me into Steven King," Danny admitted, grinning as he thought of Sam before adding, "Anyways, he seemed to fit the name,"

"True enough," Gem said dryly. "That thing's EVIL! I dunno why Flair hasn't gotten rid of him yet…" Flair rolled her eyes.

"Does he seem evil NOW, Gem?" The blue haired ghost asked pointedly.

"Ever hear the saying 'Looks are Deceiving?'" Gem countered, "Especially here in the Ghost Zone!"

"I don't think Cujo's evil," Danny sighed, "He's just a dog. A ghost dog, but still a dog…"

"Thank you," Flair said with a large smile, "YOU just became my hero for a whole new reason, Danny Phantom," Danny laughed sheepishly.

"You guys are giving me way too much credit for this hero thing," He said with an embarrassed grin, "I'm just doing what any decent person would do with my powers,"

"Aww, look!" Gem squealed, "He's modest, too, Flair!" Flair sighed and rolled her eyes.

"You two should probably get going to see Jonathan now," She said, stepping forward, "Come on, Cujo, you need to get back to your pen…" Cujo immediately switched to his large form, growling threateningly at Flair. "…Or, you can stay with Phantom. It's really up to him," Danny sighed.

"I'll take him," He said, too chivalrous to deny the girl her desire. Gem made a face and groaned and Cujo switched back to a puppy and ran around in an excited circle.

"Fine, fine!" Gem moaned dramatically, "The mutt comes. Now let's go!" And with that, Gem hauled Danny out the door, the ghost dog at his heels.

_'This place might be weird,' Danny_ thought as they dived through the crowd, 'But at least they can keep things interesting…'

* * *

**WoM_- Sorry I didn't make the update! Family obligations, you see. Anywho, this chapter's longer then normal, which is an accomplishment if you take into mind I just spent all of yesterday with a three year old latched to my leg._ (Cousin who basically hero-worships me.) _So now I've gotta run to try and make up time for all my other updates. See ya'll!_**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

IwuvMyKenshyPoo

Ant Crown

spirit1s

soaring-bright-flame

shojobutterfly

kdm13

SalanTrong

puppyface

Firefury

lilnovelist

Tetsukon

JPElles

The Unknown Alias

epobbp

Light Dragon SunsSong

Samantha-Girl Scout

Luna Mae

Moss Royal

Tizamiki

ED'sGirl 4ever

DannyPhantomFAN#1

BratCat

Missmeliss4251

enigmatic penguin

Shiva the Sarcastic

Darth Frodo

Lumias

animegurl088

AirGirl Phantom

Guess, I dare you

Firehedgehog

Ghost Writer's Assistant

Lunaqua

Petitio Principii

midnightgoth9

Seeker Carter

littlekittykat

LaBOBuren

conan98002

Invader Johnny

Spirit of Zurvan

KingofthePhoenixes

Black Mage758

Horselvr4evr123

Luna Mae

* * *

**Next update;** _February 18th_

_**See you then!**_


	13. The Sword Maker

**WoM- _I've gotta tear-jerker coming up in Erato's Abode tomorrow, so this chapter's gonna be a little slow. Things will pick up again next week, though, I swear!_ 'sweatdrops,' _Eh… Anywho, read and enjoy, people!_**

* * *

"_My father told me all about the birds and the bees, the liar - I went steady with a woodpecker till I was twenty-one."_

_**-Bob Hope**_

* * *

_"Well?" Kayla asked as she walked casually into Danny's room, glancing around in mild curiosity. "Anything?"_

_"Nothing visible," One of the men looking the room over told her. "We think he's hiding everything in places humans can't reach." Kayla chuckled._

_"Clever…" She said, bemused. "And the parent's lab?"_

_"We've actually found several acceptable, working inventions," The man admitted, "We're copying the blueprints and designs for them now, especially those of the Fenton Battlesuit, which we're hoping to scale down to a less bulky but still fully functioning suit for our own purposes,"_

_"Excellent." The woman grinned, "and the sister's room?"_

_"Medical supplies," The man answered, "and several interesting diary entries that my men are photographing right now to study once we get back to base."_

_"Meaning the ghost boy was the only one who had the common sence to hide what was important to him," Kayla said, shaking her head._

_"And even he didn't do a good job," One of the men searching the room announced, smirking down at the machine designed to find traces of ectoplasm. "I think I've got something here, under the floor." Kayla sighed in disappointment as two other men rushed over to help him, one donning an intangibility glove._

'That was far too easy,' _She thought sullenly._ 'Maybe I'm overestimating this boy…'

'Snap!'

_Kayla looked up again when the man with the intangibility glove jerked his hand out of the floor, with what looked like vampire-like snapping teeth attached. He threw it off, and the teeth chattered on the floor for a while before coming to rest at Kayla's feet. Blinking slightly, the ghost hunter bent down and picked it up by the tag that was attached._

"'Better luck next time, Plasmius,'_" She read, raising an eyebrow at the goofy little drawing of Danny Phantom sticking his tongue out that was also on the tag. She laughed slightly to herself, smirking and slipping the note into a pocket. "Cute…" Turning back to her men, she was all business again, "Has anyone been able to break the password on the computer?"_

_"Not yet," one of the men admitted._

_"Confiscate it," She ordered, "And get ready to clear out. We need to leave before someone gets suspicious," _

_"Yes Ma'am," the man in front of her said obediently, everyone jumping to obey her. Kayla barely noticed as she left, an amused smirk on her face._

'Okay, Phantom,' She thought to herself, 'Let's see what you've got…' 

"Kill me now…" Sam groaned, slumping onto the bench.

"Aw, come on, Sam," Anna said, smiling at her encouragingly, "I mean, it could be worse, right?" Sam glared dryly at the girl.

"Don't make me hurt you, Anna," she warned. Anna flinched and backed away, her hands up in front of her submissively.

"What's your problem?" Marie asked, eyeing the girl coolly, "You act like going to the ballet is the worst thing that could happen to you,"

"It is when the ballet is called 'Love Life of the Pink Princess!'" Sam snapped, "Uugh, who picked this field trip, anyways?"

"Marie," Anna answered instantly.

"It was a joint decision of the student council," Marie snapped.

"Which you're the president of," Sam pointed out with a glare. She and Marie had a mutual hatred of one another since day one.

"Let's just go already," Marie said, sounding annoyed. She stormed off heatedly, Anna at her heels trying to calm the girl, the peacekeeper as always. Sam scowled after the popular, assertive red head, muttering a few names for her under her breath.

That's when she spotted the mailbox on the other side of the street. Her eyes widened as she reached instinctively into her bag for the letters she'd written to Tucker and Danny. Glancing quickly to make sure no one saw her, the girl stole across the street and dropped the letters in before heading back with a self-satisfied smirk.

_'Well, at least this field trip was good for something…' _She thought to herself.

* * *

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 8; The Sword Maker _

* * *

"Uh, Gem?" Danny blinked as he kept one wary eye on Cujo, who was yapping happily in puppy form as he ran around between Danny's feet. The half ghost was careful not to trip over the small ghost dog. "Are we there yet?"

"Almost," The female ghost said cheerfully. "You're going in first, by the way. I don't trust this jerk for a second."

"Why?" Danny asked, his suspicion growing.

"He's a nice guy," Gem explained, "And really, really talented at what he does…"

"But…" Danny sighed.

"But he thinks the women are more interested in him then they actually are," Gem said in a droll tone, rolling her eyes. "I'd hate to hear what he says if he thinks I came in there alone… but you've just gotta see it!"

"See what?" Danny asked. Gem didn't seem to hear him, though, too excited about the thoughts she was lost in. Danny exchanged uneasy looks with Cujo as he followed the girl to a dark, medieval-looking shop.

"Like I said, after you," Gem said, stopping in front of the store. Danny sighed and went in, raising his eyebrow when a bell chimed.

"We're closed today," A male voice called out from somewhere in the back as Gem followed him in, "Come back on-" A young male ghost, somewhere around seventeen or eighteen, came into view, in the middle of stripping off thick leather gloves. "Holy-!"

"Mind your manners, Jon," Gem said, bemused. "We've already traumatized the poor boy, anything from you'd probably scare him off for good," Jon came out of his shock to scowl darkly at Gem.

"Ever hear of advanced warning, Gem?" He asked pointedly. "And I'll talk however the hell I want in my own shop!" The ghost then glanced anxiously at Danny, "Ah, no offence,"

"None taken," Danny said, a little amused. Gem shook her head.

"Anyways," Gem said, "I just met Danny not too long ago in the forest," Jon raised an eyebrow at her before turning to Danny.

"Kidnapped ya, huh?" He asked, leaning against the counter.

"Of course not!" Gem scowled darkly. Besides, you make it sound like I could've even if I wanted to!"

"Well, that's true…" Jon chuckled, "There's no way you can stand up to Phantom, Gem, even being the daughter of Pariah Dark."

"Wait, you're What?" Danny asked Gem, his jaw gaping. Gem glared at Jon irritably and he winced.

"He didn't know that, did he?" Jon asked meekly.

"What was your first hint," Gem growled back. Jon laughed sheepishly.

"Know what? I think I'll go get Equilibrium…" Jon said with a nervous laugh.

"You do that." Gem glared as Jon slinked back into the back room before laughing meekly when she noticed Danny's intense, suspicious look. "Um, guess I should've mentioned that, huh?"

"Yeah, that might've been a little important," Danny said sarcastically. Gem blushed slightly.

_'That's why she freaks everyone out so much…'_ Danny realized, thinking back to what she'd said before.

"Okay, look," She sighed, "I'm sorry. I should've told you sooner, but I don't think it's as big a deal as everyone makes it out to be. I never knew my father, and from his rep I'm definitely glad to say that. And as for my powers…" Gem shrugged, "There's nothing special about me, okay? Just basic ghost powers."

"Really?" Danny said, a little surprised. Gem grinned.

"Hey, it's more common then you think, pal," She told Danny, apparently finding his surprise funny. "Not all ghosts have a million and one powers like you do,"

"I don't have that many!" Danny protested. "More like 18… well, 19 now." Danny said, almost forgetting to add duplication. Gem gaped at him.

"How long have you been a ghost again," She asked, her voice squeaking.

"I dunno…" Danny frowned thoughtfully. "Not that long… seven months, I think. Why?"

"Most ghosts are lucky to get more then three in the span of five years," Gem said, "Even Dad usually only ghost five a year or so. If you got that many in that short a time, you've gotta be some ghost prodigy." Danny shifted uncomfortably at that.

"Look, I'm not a prodigy, alright?" He sighed, "I'm just a kid. I don't have any control over this at all." Gem raised her eyebrow but said nothing.

_'This is getting really weird for me…'_ Danny realized, taking to the air.

"Look, I'd better go," He said, starting for the door.

"What?" Gem said, aghast. Jumping forward, she latched her arms around Danny's waist, dragging him to the ground and earning a yelp of alarm from the half ghost. "No! Look, I'm really, really sorry for not telling you about my dad! PLEASE don't go now!"

"Gem," Danny said, exasperation clear in his voice. "Get off me! I need to get back to camp before someone starts looking for me."

"Come on!" Gem grunted, refusing to let go as Danny struggled to free himself from her grip. "you've gotta at least stay long enough to see Equilibrium!"

"Let go Gem!" Danny glowered, "Maybe another time but right now it's-!"

"Tada!" Jon said proudly as he re-entered the room, a sword in his hands. Danny's eyes widened when he saw it.

"COOL!" He yelled, jumping up and flying over to admire the blade up close. "Aw, man! This is the coolest sword I've ever seen! Even the Soul Shredder doesn't come close!" Jon laughed at the boy's enthusiasm.

"Glad you like it," He grinned. "Danny, meet Equilibrium. A real beauty, huh?"

"I'll say!" Danny laughed, never taking his eyes off the sword.

Equilibrium was a long, graceful looking sword, that had a silvery blade with a curving, edge trimmed in some strange black metal. The hilt of the sword was black as well, with gray trimming on both ends and three emeralds set on both sides of the sword symmetrically. The grip of the sword was black with a gray cord crisscrossing it, leading up to the end with was a smooth emerald easily big enough to fit in Danny's palm.

"AWESOME!" Danny laughed. Then his eyes widened when he noticed something else set into the hit on its dead center. A very familiar something he wasn't expecting at all.

A symbol of a P inside of a D.

"Hey…" Danny said when he saw this, "That's-!"

"All yours," Jon finished for him, holding Equilibrium out to Danny, "You were the inspiration when I made her, kid, it's only right that you have her," Danny's jaw dropped and he gaped openly at Jon, who flinched, "Of course if you don't want her, I'll understand completely…"

"Are you KIDDING?" Danny said, "Of course I want it! It's just… I don't know it I deserve something like this!" Danny stared at the sword again. He didn't know much about weapons, but Equilibrium was clearly a masterpiece to be revered. "Besides, I'm not a swordsman,"

"Of course you deserve her!" Jon said, though he seemed pleased with Danny's awe of the weapon, "I made her for you! And from what I heard, you're good enough to at least get by. Equilibrium's made out of special ghost metals, completely indestructible and perfect for channeling your powers. And you were right about this baby being able to kick the Soul Shredder to the curve," Jon smirked smugly at that. It obviously did he ego good to hear his creation compared with a legendary ghost sword. "Well, at least in your hands,"

"On it's own, Equilibrium's just a regular sword." Gem piped up. "When a ghost holds it, it reacts to his or her powers."

"Hey!" Jon said, insulted, "Don't call my baby regular! She's a work of art, Gem! There's nothing 'regular' about her!" Danny laughed, shaking his head. Obviously, Jon's speech patterns had changed since the 1800s, adopting to the modern society.

"I… I don't know what to say…" Danny confessed as he took the sword.

"You can start with agreeing to tell every pretty female ghost you meet that I'm the guy to go to if they're looking for some fun in the afterlife!" Jon volunteered cheerfully. Danny rolled his eyes, bemused.

"I think I'll just say thanks," He said, his tone dry and playful. Jon sulked slightly and Gem rolled her eyes.

"You see what I mean?" She said pointedly to Danny. "I can't tell you how many times Flair's had to smack him senseless."

"I can imagine," Danny laughed. "Anyways, thanks again. This really means a lot to me,"

"Like I said, Equilibrium was born to help you," Jon grinned. "You're the half ghost, born to walk the line between life and death and keep balance on both sides. Equilibrium was created to preserve that balance too, so she will serve no better place then in your hands,"

"As you can see, Jon is a romantic," Gem said in bemusement, "When he wants to be, anyways,"

"Haha," Jon said, giving Gem a dark look. "Anyways, Equilibrium can be summoned and sent away the same way your ghost half can."

"Really?" Danny said, holding the sword out parallel to his right arm and concentrating on it. He grinned when Equilibrium started to dematerialize from the top of the blade and ending at the tip of the hilt. "COOL!"

"Yeah, well I figured a sheath might just get in the way," Jon shrugged as Danny called Equilibrium forth again before making it disappear, obviously testing the feeling to get used to it. Jon was a little surprised at how quickly the boy had caught onto the concept, which had taken him a good week to master.

_'Then again, I wasn't meant to wield swords,'_ Jon reminded himself, _'Just make 'em,'_

"Thanks again." Danny laughed warmly, moving to shake Jon's hand. The undead sword smith took it eagerly, his chest puffing in pride.

"Glad to be of some service," He said, "Don't be a stranger, okay? I wanna make sure my baby's being taken care of,"

"Don't worry," Danny said as he released Jon's hand, "I promise I'll take the best care of her that I can! Thanks again!" Jon shook his head as the giddy Danny left with Gem and Cujo, heading back to the mortal plane.

"So, that's the kid who's gonna save the Ghost Zone, huh?" he said to himself as he watched Danny through the window, recalling the rumors that had been buzzing around about the young half ghost. "Well, we could've done a lot worse…"

* * *

"DANNY!" Valerie called out, trying to keep her voice under the hearing of the sleeping hunters, yet loud enough for her friend to hear.

"Its not use," Jazz sighed, "Maybe we should go back for mom and dad…"

"And get Danny into trouble?" Valerie frowned. "No way!"

"Mr. And Mrs. Fenton will know what we're up against better then we will," Raven reminded them in a placid tone she usually reserved for reasoning with her teammates when situations got tough. "If Danny really was captured by a ghost-"

Just then there was a flash of bright light and a loud yelp, and Danny Fenton fell through some bushes and into the clearing, earning stares from the three girls.

"Danny?" Jazz stepped forward to help her brother. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Danny said. "I just lost track of time is all. Stargazing." Valerie chuckled.

"How 'bout joining everyone here on earth once in a while, space cadet?" she teased warmly. "Getting your head out of the clouds every once in a while will really help you in the long run,"

"Don't scare us like that, Danny!" Jazz scolded her little brother soundly. "We thought you were taken by ghosts!" Danny look bemused at that for some reason.

"Come on, Jazz," He said, standing up and brushing himself off, "You know me,"

"Anyways, we better get back to camp," Raven reminded them, "Before someone catches us out here,"

"Got it," Danny said, "Go on ahead. I'll catch up." All the girls hesitated and Danny blushed, "Look, It won't take me more then a few minutes, alright? I need to tie my shoe," Jazz sighed.

"Go on," she told the other two girls, "I'll stay here and make sure he gets back in one piece." After exchanging glances, the other two girls walked away silently, obviously deciding that Danny was safe with his sister and vice versa. As soon as their footsteps faded, Jazz turned back to Danny. "Okay, what really took you so long?" Danny grinned widely at her question.

"Watch this," He said, holding his right arm out. Jazz's eyes widened and she gasped loudly when Danny's fist started to glow and Equilibrium appeared from the hit to the blade.

"That… wow, Danny!" Jazz gazed at the sword in awe, "That's so cool!"

"Isn't it?" Danny laughed. "It's called Equilibrium. It's a gift from a ghost I met," Jazz frowned.

"Wow," she said, "You're getting a lot of gift recently. I mean, first the necklace and now this?" Danny didn't miss the suspicion in his sister's tone.

"Aw, come on, Jazz," He sighed, "Jon was just thanking me. And I trust Clockwork. There's nothing to worry about, okay?" He stood up and starched as he said this, "We better get back to camp before Val freaks out again and drags out her hunting gear," Jazz winced before her eyes widened.

"But Danny," She started to warn her little brother, "you're shoe's still-!"

Too late. Danny had already stepped on his lace and went crashing down another hill to land in a tangled, Daze heap at the bottom.

"…Ow…" Jazz sighed and started down to help her little brother up.

_'It's a really good thing ghosts are intangible,' _She thought in dry amusement, _'Or else Amity Park would be in big trouble with a superhero like Danny…'_

* * *

**WoM- _This was actually just a little bit longer then I thought it would be. Lil foreshadowing, and a new weapon for Danny._ (YAY!) _Those of you who want to see Equilibrium up close and personal _(And I'm quite proud of how it turned out) _Check out my deviantart account for the fan art_ (Link's in my profile)**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

epobbp, IwuvMyKenshyPoo, AirGirl Phantom, shojobutterfly, Firefury, Seeker Carter, Moss Royal, Firehedgehog, Missmeliss4251, misaoshiru, midnightgoth9, shadowspinner1, enigmatic penguin, littlekittykat, Darth Frodo, DannyPhantomFAN#1, Mistress of Darkness, Lunaqua, arc angel michael, Shiva the Sarcastic, conan98002, Samantha-Girl Scout, Lumias, BratCat, Black Mage758, phantomshadowdragon, Darkingfire, puppyface, Ghost Writer's Assistant Light Dragon SunsSong shaylateii, Horselvr4evr123, Goofn1, Invader Johnny, Bermudian Chaos, spirit1s, GhostAnn, Vincent-Strife65, Ghost Kat, JPElles, kdm13

* * *

**Next update;** _February 25th_

_**See you then!**_


	14. The Haunters

**WoM- _This chapter was certainly fun to write! _'grins widely,' _Then again, I seem to be getting the most idea for this story… I'm already planning out a sequel and a third installment even though this one's nowhere near done! To be honest, I don't think it's even half way there…_ 'laughs sheepishly,' _Man, this and the Gender Confusion companion pieces are gonna be the death of me length wise…_**

* * *

"_Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead."_

_**-Benjamin Franklin**_

* * *

_"Still nothing?" Kayla asked incredulously._

_"No Ma'am," The man answered, typing something into the box again, only to be denied access._

_"Well can you bypass it?" She pressed._

_"Not on the current OS I can't," He sighed heavily, "Apparently Phantom has a friend who knows computers… that or he's good with them himself. This thing has air tight security,"_

_"Of course," Kayla said dryly, "Well, keep trying passwords. Even with ghost powers and a superhero alias, he's a fourteen year old high school boy first and foremost, he can't be that hard to figure out…" Frowning thoughtfully, she asked, "Did you try Phantom?"_

_"Yes, Ma'am,"_

_"Fenton?"_

_"Yes, Ma'am,"_

_"Ghost Zone,"_

_"Yes Ma'am. I also tried Fenton Portal, Danny, his birthday, his sister's birthday, his mother's birthday, his father's birthday, his parent's anniversary, his school name, his middle name…"_

_"We get the picture," A new female voice cut in. Kayla and the grunt both turned to see an amused Megumi as the door, her robes swaying gracefully around her. "It appears your new target is more complicated then you anticipated…"_

_"Don't be ridiculous," Kayla said absently with a sigh, "We just don't know him on an intimate scale just yet. Though personally, I'd rather get my hands on him then the files on his computer." She grinned a wide, predatory grin, "It's been so long since I've had to subdue a ghost with his talents and fighting spirit…"_

_"Do you honestly think you can beat him into submission that easily, Kayla?" Megumi asked, sounding annoyed._

_"Maybe, maybe not," Kayla shrugged in an unconcerned way before the smile returned with a vigor. "But I can try…"_

"You know, sweetie, that can't be healthy…"

Tucker rolled his eyes and piled more bacon onto his plate, ignoring his mother's disapproving frown. Next to her Mr. Foley sat reading the newspaper and sipping at a steaming cup of coffee, checking his watch now and then to see how much longer he had before he needed to leave for work.

"Come on, Mom," The tech geek said, "You're starting to sound like Sam…" Mrs. Foley sighed and shook her head.

"Alright," She said dryly, "But don't say I never told you so when you have a heart attack at the age of twenty."

"Speaking of Sam, have you heard from her recently?" Mr. Foley asked. He liked Tucker's friends. Both Danny and Sam were good kids, though Sam was a little outspoken and Danny a little shy. Still, between the three of them, they seemed to level everything out, forming a deep, lasting connection that was rare among teens in the current day and age.

"Nah," Tucker sighed, "But I think I'm gonna get a letter from her soon."

"When are Danny and his parents getting back from their camping trip?" Mrs. Foley pressed as she buttered her toast, "They did find someone to fill your spot, right Tucker? I'd hate to think That Maddie and Jack wasted money like that…"

"Monday, Mom, they get back Monday," Tucker answered, "And yeah, the new girl volunteered herself to take my spot. Then Valerie's going too…" Mrs. Foley frowned at the infliction in her son's tone when he mentioned his ghost-hating classmate.

"Now Tucker," She scolded absently, "Don't use that kind of tone when you talk about someone. Valerie's a perfectly nice girl, and she seems to like Danny a lot…"

"Human Danny at least…" Tucker muttered under his breath.

"What was that, son?" Mr. Foley asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing!" Tucker answered instantly. Mr. Foley dropped the subject.

Tucker had been saying lots of strange things like that recently, since a little before the ghost attacks began, actually. Both Mr. and Mrs. Foley had gotten used to brushing comments like that aside, deeming them of no more importance then the rest of Tucker's random blathering.

"Anyways, I've gotta go meet Melissa at the Nasty Burger," Tucker said, standing up and leaving, "Bye Mom, bye Dad!"

"Make sure to wear your helmet!" Mrs. Foley called after her son as he started over to his motor scooter, the popular mode of transportation for teens in Amity. She sighed as she watched him speed off, "I swear that boy's been acting so vague lately…"

"Leave him alone, Honey," Mr. Foley sighed, "He's a teenager, teens are bound to keep secrets."

"But with all the ghost stuff going on, and the Fentons out of town until Monday-!"

"Ghosts aren't going to kidnap Tucker," Mr. Foley rolled his eyes in exasperation, "Why would they? He's just a normal teenager…"

"But he's friends with the son of the ghost hunting family of Amity Park!" Mrs. Foley protested, "He's over at FentonWorks more then he's here!"

"Relax, Sweetie," Mr. Foley said as he stood, "Danny's such a quiet kid, he's practically a ghost himself. I doubt anyone out there hates him enough to kidnap his best friend," Mrs. Foley sighed heavily at that.

"I suppose you're right…" She agreed reluctantly. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid…" Mr. Foley chuckled softly, kissing his wife gently on the forehead.

"I've got to get to work he told her, "See you when I get out, Honey,"

"Drive safe," Mrs. Foley responded with a slight smile as she watched her husband go.

_'He's right,'_ She reassured herself, _'There's nothing to be worried about. Both Danny and Tucker are perfectly safe…'_

* * *

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 14; The Haunters_

* * *

"Ride and shine, Kiddos!"

Raven and Valerie groaned in union, pulling the blankets op over their heads to block out the sun. Unfortunately, it was not as easy to block out the loud, cheerful voices of Jack and Maddie Fenton.

"Come on, kids!" Maddie sang after her husband's initial morning greeting, "It's a beautiful day! You don't wanna spend it in the tent sleeping now, do you?"

"Wanna make a bet on that?" Raven asked dryly.

"Now don't be like that!" Maddie scolded lightly when she heard that, "They're already serving breakfast at the cabin, and then we have a day of fun-filled activities for you guys!"

"Do we have to?" Valerie moaned. Both girls were dead tired (To pardon the horrible pun,) after their late night trek through the forest, and lounging in her sleeping bag all day sounded like a very appealing fate to the young ghost hunter.

"What do you think, Jack?" Maddie asked, turning to her husband.

"Well, I suppose I could unpack the Fenton Air Horn…" Jack replied thoughtfully.

Raven and Valerie shot up simultaneously.

"We're up, we're up!" Valerie told him and she wiggled out of her sleeping bag. Jack and Maddie exchanged grins.

"Works every time!" Jack said as he and his wife left. Raven's eyebrow kicked up as the flap fell back down.

"Do you think there really is a Fenton Air Horn? She asked Valerie dryly.

"Do you wanna find out?" Valerie shot back before yawning, "I'm gonna kill Danny for making us stay up so late…"

"Can I help?" Raven grumbled as she left the warmth of her sleeping bag. She checked absently to make sure her wig was still on before turning back to the ghost hunter. "Hey, did it feel like we were being watched last night to you?" Valerie raised an eyebrow at the question.

"You too, huh?" She sighed, "I thought I was being paranoid…" Raven sighed heavily.

_'I thought so…'_ She said grimly to herself. _'There's a ghost running around here somewhere, and he was in camp last night…'_ Did that mean it was targeting someone? Danny maybe? The energies seemed to hover closer to the tent the Fentons siblings were in, after all…

"It was probably nothing," Raven said out loud, "Just nerves. I've never slept in a haunted forest before."

"Scared?" Valerie taunted.

"Of ghosts?" Raven clarified, "No, not me."

"Then what are you scared of?" Valerie asked. Raven shot her a look.

"I'll tell you when you tell me," She countered softly. Valerie glared at her.

"I don't get scared," She snapped defiantly, raising her chin as if daring Raven to tell her otherwise. The Titan raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

_'Doesn't that sound familiar…'_ She thought dryly to herself. She never would've thought that she and Valerie had something in common. _'Then again, I learned that lesson the hard way. Hopefully she won't get to say the same.'_

"We'd better get going." Raven told her tent companion with a sigh, "Before Mr. Fenton comes back with that air horn…"

"Good idea," Valerie agreed, dressing in her normal attire, "Besides, I'm starved…" Raven agreed with her classmate there, since they'd missed dinner the night before in Jack Fenton's eagerness to get to the camp site with time to spare.

"So, any idea what those activities Mrs. Fenton was talking about are?" Raven asked as she and Valerie left just in time to see a very happy-looking Jack Fenton practically skipping away from his children's tent.

"Knowing these people?" Valerie grinned, "I'd say that whatever it is, it's definitely ghost-related." Raven chuckled a little to herself at that.

"Isn't that the truth…" She said, bemused.

"Hey!"

Raven and Valerie turned as one at the unfamiliar call, blinking in surprise when they saw Katie and Nene heading towards them, though Katie seemed to be scanning the forest as if expecting someone else.

"Valerie, right?" Katie asked, "And Rae?"

"Yeah," Valerie said shortly, suspicion heavy in her tone, "So?"

"Where's Danny?" Nene asked them bluntly, "I wanted to ask him something…"

"We wanted to ask him something," Katie corrected, glaring at his sister. "Well, I do at any rate. Freakfest here probably just wants to drill him about all the ghost attacks in Amity."

"So what if I do," Nene snapped, "Ghost hunting is more interesting then waving around pompoms and learning annoying, overly peppy chants," Sighing, she turned back to Raven, "Well?"

Before either girls could answer, the earsplitting wail of an air horn was heard somewhere behind them, followed by two loud screams, one male, one female.

"DAD! PUT THAT THING AWAY!" Jazz screeched loudly.

"…Do we want to know what that's about…?" Katie asked, blinking over Raven's shoulder.

"Probably not," Valerie answered as she and Raven started walking again. Katie and Nene fell into step alongside them.

"So, anyways," Katie said casually, "does Danny have a girlfriend?"

* * *

"I can't believe they used the Fenton Air Horn on us!" Jazz snapped heatedly as she and her little brother neared the cabin where breakfast was being served.

"Come on, Jazz," Danny sighed, "Quit making such a big deal about it."

"It's your fault, too," Jazz said with an accusing glare, "If you weren't up at god-knows-what hour playing hooky with a ghost…"

"Ja-azz," Danny said through gritted teeth, glancing around nervously. "Keep your voice down!"

"Nobody's listening, Danny," Jazz rolled her eyes, "Everyone's a breakfast… oh, man…"

"What?" Danny tensed at his sister's defeated moan, turning to see what the cause was. It became all too clear when he saw the small device fixed to the door of the cabin, and he couldn't help but groan himself.

_'Great…'_ He thought sarcastically, _'Doesn't Giovanni ever take a break?'_

"Think you can go invisible and turn it off?" Jazz asked quietly.

"Maybe…" Danny murmured, "Just hope it doesn't have an automatic ecto-shock…"

"That's mom's tech, Danny," Jazz reassured him hastily, "I don't think Giovanni knows about it…"

"Right…" Danny sighed. "Cover for me?"

"You know it," Jazz responded with an encouraging smile.

Danny ducked behind a tree, which Jazz then leaned up against in a would-be casual pose. A flask of light later, an invisible Danny flew over to the door, reaching attentively to flip the switch and turn the device off.

"I'm telling you, that's exactly what they said!"

Danny started slightly at his mother's voice, her tone more serious then he ever heard it before. Glancing down through the wall, Danny saw both his parents talking to Giovanni, and all of them looked pretty upset about something.

"You're sure?" Giovanni pressed, his tone quiet, "You're sure that they said Haunters?"

"Positive," Jack nodded, "We both heard them, they said they wanted to leave before the Haunters got them next," Giovanni sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair.

"It could be a mistake," He murmured softly. "Or a next group using the same name… or maybe they were just trying to shake Phantom. He seems to be much more territorial then most ghost, if he thought something like the Haunters were around in Amity…"

"It wasn't a mistake, Giovanni!" Maddie snapped, "And is that really a risk we can take? If the Haunters are regrouping…!"

"That's impossible, Maddie!" Giovanni said firmly, "GHS would never allow it,"

"That only if the Ghost Hunter Society knows they're regrouping!" Maddie pointed out, "Which they don't!"

"Then we'll tell them what you heard and leave the rest to them," Giovanni said, "There's not much else we can do besides that,"

"But we can't know if they'll do anything," Maddie pointed out, "I'm not going to trust the lives of my children on that kind of chance, Giovanni,"

"I don't know what else to tell you, Maddie," Giovanni said with a frown, "We can't trust the words of ghosts, and if a group of ghost hunters as powerful as the Haunters was regrouping…"

"Ghost hunters…?" Danny repeated softly, not bothering to mask his surprise. Was that what everyone was making such a big deal about? A bunch of ghost hunters? He'd beaten ghost hunters before, what was so different about these Haunter guys?

"Besides, Dr. Pratt is dead now, remember? Who would lead them with him gone?"

"Maybe…" Maddie said doubtfully, "I just… I don't want to risk it…"

Having heard enough, Danny slipped silently back out of the wall and flew back to where his sister was waiting, turning human again and stepping out from behind the tree, not even noticing Jazz's impatient frown.

"What took you so long?" Jazz demanded irritably. Seeing Danny's expression, her face melted into concern, "Danny? You okay?"

"I think we have a problem…" Danny sighed heavily.

_'A really big problem, too,'_

* * *

_**WoM- I'll end it there for now! Stay tuned for the next installment!**_

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Moss Royal, Horselvr4evr123, epobbp, Missmeliss4251, Invader Johnny, enigmatic penguin, Tetsukon, Ant Crown, Shiva the Sarcastic, Lumias, conan98002, BratCat, Bermudian Chaos, midnightgoth9, Arrogant Drummer, kawaii chibi shun, Stephen King Reincarnated, My Eternal Facade, Seeker Carter, phantomshadowdragon, IwuvMyKenshyPoo, Firehedgehog, The Halfa Wannabe, Darth Frodo, puppyface, Rob Phantom, mimiru1618, Samantha-Girl Scout, The Unknown Alias, NYCbound, Black Mage758, Gmasangel, Ghost Writer's Assistant, JPElles, auenm, WolfDaughter, Phantomhobbitses, kikyo is a bitch and should rot in hell, Light Dragon SunsSong, The Great Susinko, Zuzanny, Fading Background, Fade B.

* * *

**Next update;** _March 4th_

_**See you then!**_


	15. Everything to Lose

**WoM- 'Making a face'_ Man It's gonna take forever to make my scheduled right again! Sorry for the late update, but I'm having problems at home right now…_ 'grumbles darkly to herself,' _Of course, I suppose I should be grateful that my mom is so much more lenient then my dad…and that I have three half days this week._**

* * *

"_The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf has."_

_**-Will Rogers**_

* * *

_"4998… 4999…" Vlad jumped slightly when the door to his prison opened, torn away from counting the tiles on the floors, walls and ceiling to scowl when Megumi entered with her smooth, graceful strides. "Oh. You again."_

_"I've come here to ask questions about the other half ghost," Megumi said coolly, frowning at Vlad._

_"Have you?" Vlad asked, clearly annoyed. "Well, I'm afraid that my memory on that particular subject draws up short… and don't try any of you inventions on me, I am far less of a simpleton then those whom I employ."_

_"Be that as it may," Megumi reminded the man, "You are not infallible. You capture alone should prove that," Vlad scowled at her._

_"You shouldn't try to capture him," Vlad said shortly, "Unlike me, Daniel is too young to know of you, and Maddie would never allow her children to learn of such a despicable clan. He will fight back, even if it is a fight that kills him, and you will lose what you most seek in this world,"_

_"I seek nothing but peace," Megumi said harshly, "Unfortunately, I am as chained to this place as you are. Perhaps even more so…"_

_"Oh?" Vlad asked, sounding curious._

_"But that is unimportant now," Megumi sighed, "Now, all that I care about is the lives that are most in danger from my brother's plotting. Especially that of young Danny Phantom."_

_"Why do you care?" Vlad snorted._

_"Why do you?" Megumi shot back, raising an eyebrow. Vlad's mouth curled into a cruel smile._

_"He is powerful," The elder half ghost answered, "Even a blind fool could see that instantly. Smart, too… creative as I'm sure you've come to find, which is always an important trait in any fighter or scientist… Highly keen when he's been motivated enough… Resilient as well, with all the fighting he does…" Vlad chuckled dryly, "He is, in all senses of the term, a perfect disciple. The son I never had…"_

_"That is you reason?" Megumi asked, sounding surprised. Vlad's smile darkened._

_"It's all I need," He drolled out, bemused._

"Now, let's see, what should I wear…" Paulina hummed thoughtfully to herself as she studied the wardrobe she'd laid out on her bed. "Hmmm… well, maybe the black sleeveless turtleneck since he seems to have a thing for Goth chicks… the dark blue jeans because they really show off the shape of my legs… oh! And these new high-heeled black boots!" On the other side of the room, Star groaned loudly and rubbed her temples.

"Paulina," She said irritably, "We've been through twelve different outfits by now. I really don't see why it's so important that you have the perfect outfit for Tuesday…"

"Well it is, okay?" Paulina snapped back, holding the top against her chest, "Anyways, did you talk to Jordan in Newspaper like you said you would?"

"Of course," Star answered, "The article comes out on the newspaper this Monday, as usual. Mrs. Ishiyama didn't like it, but we managed to pull some strings and get it in,"

"Naturally," Paulina smirked.

"I still don't see why it's so important to get an article on Raven from the Teen Titans in our school newspaper," Star said, frowning curiously at Paulina, "I mean, what's the big deal? Unless it has something to do with the trip to Jump City…"

"It doesn't" Paulina told her absently as she held a red micro skirt to herself, studying her reflection carefully. "But there is a point, don't worry about that,"

"Then what is it?" Star pressed.

"That," Paulina answered, "is for me to know." She smirked at her reflection.

'This is perfect,' She thought smugly to herself, 'I get to take my revenge on a loser and get closer with the guy of my dreams! Now I just need to do something about Valerie so she doesn't interfere…'

"Hey, Star?" Paulina started innocently, "You're on the acting committee, right?"

"Uh-huh," Star nodded, "I'm the president of the drama club, too. So?"

"Aren't you guys putting on a play soon?" Paulina asked.

"Yeah." Star nodded, "It's an original, too. Some kid here wrote it up for us… It's about a girl who goes into the land of the dead to save her brother after he's been kidnapped by an evil ghost because of something she did, and ends up falling in love with a different ghost while she's there." Paulina grinned widely at that.

"Perfect!" she sang out, smirking, "I need you to do me one little favor…"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 15; Everything to Lose_

* * *

"10 AM; lectures on safety procedures in ghost hunting from the Dassltons." Jazz read off the list that she and the other kids at their table had been given after they finished eating (Ghost-shaped pancakes with glowing green eggs not even Danny was brave enough to touch…)

"10:30 AM; Make defensive ecto-based weaponry with Jack Fenton," Danny continued, sighing heavily, "So that's what all the blueprints were for…"

"11 AM; Martial Arts lessons with Maddie Fenton?" Valerie glanced curiously at Danny, "You never told me your mom knew how to fight!"

"She's a ninth degree black belt," Danny admitted. Valerie grinned, suddenly eager to get to that particular lesson and test herself against Maddie Fenton.

"Noon; Break for lunch," Katie read off next.

"Your Mom and Dad are making it," Nene told Danny, "They mentioned something about using ecto-energies to cook…"

Danny and Jazz shared uneasy looks at that.

"1 PM; testing out ongoing experiments," Nathan sighed and made a face, "Greeeat…"

"2 PM; Tour the ghost hunter's vehicles," Raven read off, "Back to the GAV, then?"

"Unfortunately…" Jazz made a face.

"2:30 PM; go over ways to identify a ghost," Valerie read off, "I'm pretty sure we've already got that covered, everything considered."

"Speak for yourself," Nene sighed, "You guys are so lucky! I've never seen a ghost before…" Once again, Valerie, Danny and Jazz all exchanged looks.

"3 PM; Myth versus Fact; studying the science and folklore of ghosts," Jazz read off, looking surprised. "Hey, that actually sounds kind of interesting…"

"4 PM; more ecto-weaponry," Danny read off next. "Offensive, this time."

"Really?" Valerie asked, trying not to sound interested. Jazz's lips thinned a little at that.

"5:30 PM; Dinner," Katie smiled at Danny, "You know, I bet having dinner alone in the forest would be nice…" Valerie glared at the girl, forcing a cold smile.

"Too bad we're not allowed off on our own, huh?" She asked in a falsely sweet voice. Katie glared at her.

"6 PM; Ghost Hunting in the forest," Nathan sighed at that, "I knew that one would come up somewhere…"

"Then we come back at 9 for a free hour of talking amongst ourselves before lights out," Jazz groaned, "Then we do it all over again tomorrow…" Danny laughed.

"Come on, Jazz," he said, amusement clear in his voice, "I mean, it could be worse, right?"

"Worse then MOM'S COOKING?" Jazz asked pointedly, glaring at her little brother. Danny winced at that one.

"Okay, good point…" He said with a wry smile.

"Okay, kids!" Mary-Ann sang as she came into the cabin, "Everyone ready to start off this fun-filled day of activities!"

"Do we have to…?" Raven asked warily.

"Unless you'd rather help out with some experiments the Johnson couple are working on," Mary-Ann said, sounding bemused. "I think they said something about their last test simulation dummy being burned from the inside out, and since the GHS forbids animal testing, they need a live test subject…" All the kids went a sickly green color at that.

"Was it slow and painful or quick and easy?" Jazz asked, clearly serious.

"Actually, I need to go back to the tent for a while," Danny said, grinning sheepishly at his parents, "I've got an assignment in my History class that's due Tuesday. It's almost done, but I'll probably need about a half hour to finish it off."

"Oh?" Maddie said, looking faintly surprised, "Well, I suppose that's alright. We've drilled the safety procedures for ghost-based weaponry and pretty much everything else into your head since you were born, after all. Especially after the accident…"

_'Oh no…'_ Danny thought, mentally groaning as Jazz visibly paled.

"Accident?" Valerie repeated, sounding concerned, "You never told me about any accident!"

"It was before Danny met you, sweetie," Maddie said absently, "Just before Danny started high school actually. He, Sam and Tucker were all playing around in the lab and Danny got shocked by the Fenton Portal. That's what got it operational, though Danny was acting strangely after that for the longest time."

"He was electrocuted, Mom!" Jazz snapped defensively, "And everything considered, he's lucky he doesn't have three heads after that!"

"She's right, Maddie," Giovanni chuckled, "Haven't you got a lock or something?"

"Tried it," Maddie said grimly, "Doesn't work. Honestly, those kids spend more time in the lab then we do…"

"MOM!" Jazz yelled, glowering at her mother.

"Look, that doesn't matter now," Danny said, shooting Jazz a warning look that had Raven raising an eyebrow. "Anyways, think Jazz can help me? She's better at this stuff then I am…"

"Of course, sweetie," Maddie beamed, obviously proud of how well her children got along with one another. "Just make sure you're back here for you're father's presentation."

"We will!" Jazz promised quickly, eager for the chance tom escape as she grabbed her brother's arm and pulled him out the door, "See you there!" Raven shook her head as she watched them go.

"Don't you think they're acting a little weird?" She asked Valerie, who shrugged in reply.

"What, you haven't noticed yet?" She asked absently, "There's no such thing as 'normal' in the Fenton family." Valerie chuckled to herself, "But that's part of what makes them so much fun to be around…"

* * *

"You want to look up the Haunters?" Jazz repeated, blinking as her brother started tapping words out on her laptop. (He'd left his at home by accident.)

"It's just been bugging me…" Danny sighed, "I mean, the ghosts mention them, then Vlad, and now they're even got Mom and Dad worried? I've never seen Dad look so serious, Jazz!"

"Well couldn't you have waited until we came back to the tent tonight?" Jazz asked irritably, "you shouldn't lie to Mom and Dad like that, Danny!"

"Hey, you're more then welcome to go back to the safety lecture if you want," Danny said with a pointed look. Jazz blanched.

"W-Wait a second, let's not be hasty here!" She said quickly, "I never said it was unwanted, just wrong." Danny shook his head, grinning.

"You're hopeless, Jazz," he told his sister wryly, brightening as the computer chirped loudly. "Hey, I found something!"

"Really? Lemme see," Ignoring her brother's cry of protest, Jazz wretched the computer away, clicking on the link her brother had found to open a new window. "Hey, you're right!"

"No duh…" Danny said dryly, rolling his eyes. Ignoring Danny, Jazz began to read the information on the site.

"Founded in 1983 by Dr. Benjamin Pratt, the Haunters were a group of extremist ghost hunters who invented most of the workable technology in the field of paranormal studies today," Jazz started, "Despite these advances, the Haunters were thrown from the Ghost Hunter Society in 1989 thanks to unethical behaviors on the part of Dr. Pratt and his staff."

"Unethical Behavior?" Danny repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"It doesn't elaborate on that…" Jazz frowned, "weird…"

"I'll say," Danny shook his head, "And it'd have to be pretty bad, too, if the GHS is letting mom and Dad get away with half the things they're planning on doing to the ghosts they catch,"

"The Haunters continued their work in the shadows until a tragic accident in the lab they were working in killed Dr. Pratt, along with three of his assistants and Fiona Pratt, his wife of five years, in 1993." Jazz read on as if Danny hadn't spoken, "With the loss of their brilliant leader, the Haunters were forced to disband by the GHS. Most of the group's workings remain a mystery even today, as so many of the employees of the Haunters either committed suicide after the disbanding or disappeared altogether." Danny gave a low whistle at that.

"Creepy…" He muttered, shaking his head. "Does it say anything else?"

"Just that Dr. Pratt's body is buried in a tomb on the Ghost Hunter Society headquarters along with special talismans to keep his spirit trapped so he doesn't become a ghost," Jazz shrugged as she shut her laptop. Danny frowned.

"Weird…" He muttered, "I mean, a tomb with talismans? Why go so far for just this one ghost hunter? What was he trying to do what freaked out all the ghost and even other ghost hunters so much?"

"We'll find out more once we get home," Jazz promised her brother, "Tucker will probably be able to get everything we need in a heartbeat."

"Yeah…" Danny sighed, reaching for his backpack, "I'll call him now. That way he'll have what we need before lights out tonight,"

"Isn't he supposed to be on a date with Melissa?" Jazz asked suspiciously. Danny rolled his eyes.

"This is important, Jazz!" He said, clearly annoyed with her reluctance, "I mean, what if these guys…" Jazz blinked when her brother trailed off, gaping into his bag.

"Danny?" Jazz asked, worry working it's way into her tone. When Danny didn't respond, she leaned around him to look into his backpack at what he was staring at.

And found a red eyed puppy with green fur blinking back.

_'What on earth?'_

* * *

**WoM- _What, you didn't think that was it for Cujo, didja?_ 'sweat drops' _I honestly didn't mean to cut it off there though. Sorry! At any rate, I promise you that next chapter will be up on time! Cross my heart, people!_**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Ohka Breynekai, littlekittykat, Horselvr4evr123, kingdomhearts222, Missmeliss4251, phantomshadowdragon, epobbp, Moss Royal, Seeker Carter, enigmatic penguin, Light Dragon SunsSong, Firefury, AirGirl Phantom, Black Mage758, Ghost Writer's Assistant, Shiva the Sarcastic, Samantha-Girl Scout, Ebony Phantom, The Unknown Alias, BratCat, conan98002, Darth Frodo, Rob Phantom, Fading Background, midnightgoth9, shojobutterfly, Boxghost228, Firehedgehog, Shadowkeeper13, Invader Johnny, WolfDaughter, kinguofdoragons, spirit1s, Lumias, Krystal, The Great Susinko, Zuzanny, JPElles, dante hunter, Pterodactyl, kdm13, Giff

* * *

**Next update;** _March 11th_

_**See you then!**_


	16. Hide and Freak

**WoM- _Hey, I'm not dead!_ (Probably will be once the readers of some of my other fanfics get ahold of me, though... especially SoS. They've been getting antsy.) _And guess who's all done with school now? And by all done, I mean diploma and all! _'dances around' _Hopefully, that means more time to update until I take off on my annual trip to Kentucky. Oh, and as of June 9th, I'm a legal adult! _(That date look familiar to anyone?) _Rght, rambling done. Much thanks to _Crazy Billie Joe Loving Freak _for beta-ing this for me! _'glomps' _I owe you my soul, kid!_**

* * *

_"The average teenager still has all the faults his parents outgrew."_

_**-Unknown**_

* * *

_"Well?"_

_"We haven't made any progress yet on our part." Kayla admitted, sighing slightly. "No one can figure out the boy's password, not even the ghosts we've offered to free if they can crack it." Leaning against a table, the girl asked. "What about you? Any luck looking through their memories?"_

_"Maybe," Trent smirked, sitting in the seat at the head of the table. He tossed Kayla two files, which she opened curiously. Her eyebrow kicked up at the contents._

_"Tucker Foley and Samantha Manson?" she read, shooting her boss a puzzled look. "What do these two have to do with anything?"_

_"Don't you recognize them?" Trent asked mildly, an amused smirk playing at his lips._

_"Well, I know the dorky-looking one hangs around with our boy," Kayla responded, frowning slightly, "but I don't know the Goth chick at all."_

_"They're his friends," Trent told her, watching her expression carefully as she studied the pictures, especially that of the girl. "They're the only ones who know about all of this ghost business, too. Well, other than his sister, but we'll be disposing of her soon enough."_

_"Want me to make these two disappear, then?" Kayla asked brightly, beaming at the boy eagerly. "It's been a while since I've had to help kill someone…"_

_"No," Trent answered. "Not just yet. As it stands, the girl is useless to us and to Phantom, since she's in Europe. We'll handle her as soon as the rest of this gets settled." Trent rolled his eyes as Kayla moaned loudly in disappointment at that._

_"Aww…" she sulked. "And here I wanted to slit someone's throat…"_

_"Later, Kayla." Trent said absently. "For now, though, we focus on our main goal…"_

"_Duuuude_…!" Beast Boy moaned, frowning in annoyance at the TV, which he was watching upside down. Robin and Starfire were out checking out a robbery at Jump City's First National Bank, leaving Beast Boy and Cyborg home alone to recover. (Technically repair, in Cyborg's case…)

About ten minutes after the two had left, Cyborg had lost his patience with the supposedly bed-ridden Beast Boy tampering with his workshop, and banned him from the room as he finished with the repairs he needed to make, ordering the changeling to watch TV instead.

"800 channels and nothing's on…" Beast Boy grumped as he finished cycling through the TV guide for the third time. "Figures…" Sighing, Beast Boy tossed his remote away, turning himself right side up to try and think of some form of entertainment.

_Video games?_ No fun without someone to play against…

_Snackage?_ He wasn't really in the mood for another Tofu hot dog…

_Training?_ His leg was still killing him from Mumbo's attack…

_Bugging Raven?_ He considered it for a moment before dismissing it. The half-demon sorceress sounded pretty serious with her threats, and Beast Boy liked to stay on her good side where he could. She'd get mad if he called her up without a good reason.

…But that didn't mean he couldn't mess with her stuff while she was gone.

Beast Boy grinned widely, standing and stretching. With Raven gone and the other Titans occupied with more important business, this left him with a rare window of opportunity. After all, he hadn't been allowed in Raven's room since the mess with her magic meditation mirror thingymabobber. Passing up on something like this was near criminal!

His mind made up, Beast Boy half-limped to Raven's room, opening the door and proceeding with the most extreme of caution, just in case Raven had set up some kind of anti-theft hexes or anything of that sort.

The room looked pretty much exactly the same as the last time he'd been there, though Raven had acquired a few new creepy voodoo-looking artifacts. And what was the deal with the shrunken head…?

Deciding that he'd really rather not know (especially given what had happened the last time he'd touched something of Raven's when he didn't know what it was), Beast Boy bypassed the artifacts and the bookshelf crammed with texts (most written in some weird squiggly writing he couldn't make heads or tails of) and went straight for the jackpot.

Raven's closet.

Grinning eagerly, Beast Boy threw the doors to her closet open, digging through the outfits he found and examining them one at a time before tossing them precariously over his shoulder and moving onto the next.

"Jeeze…" the changeling chuckled to himself as he worked. "How many leotards does one girl need?"

That wasn't to say that her usual outfit was all Raven owned, though. He found several outfits that he knew were for casual wear as well. In fact, it was as he was whistling at the black off-the-shoulders half top with a glittering silvery dragon twisting around a blue rose that he'd never seen the dark Titan wear that he spotted something that really got his attention.

Half hidden in the back of the closet was a bright yellow box wrapped in shiny pink ribbon, with a card on top that bore Raven's name in Starfire's handwriting. Unable to resist, Beastboy reached for the card to read the other side.

"_'Friend Raven,'_" he started off, raising an eyebrow as he read on. "_'Please accept this token of friendship and gratitude in celebration of Glortis- Glorgtin_- Some weird Tameranian holiday_. May the bond we share grow stronger with time.'_" Grinning down at the present mischievously, Beastboy undid the ribbon to lift the top.

And stared for a good minute and a half before bursting into a fit of laugher.

"BB? You up here?" Cyborg called from the hall, his voice growing louder as he approached the room. "I just finished my repairs, you up for a— **_DUDE!_**" Standing horrorstruck at Raven's still ajar door, Cyborg stared at the mess his green friend had made in the sorceress's room. "_What are you_ **DOING**_? Are you trying to get yourself _**KILLED**"

"D-dude!" Beast Boy gasped out between his laughter. "You've gotta see this!"

"I mean, don't you ever learn you lesson?" Cyborg demanded, not paying all that much attention to what Beast Boy was saying, "Don't you remember what happened last time we came in here without permission? Coming in here like this with Raven out of the city, you must have some kind of—!" Cyborg's rant died at his lips when Beast Boy held up the outfit he'd been in hysterics over. "…What. Is. THAT?"

"Star gave it to Rae!" Beast Boy grinned widely at his fellow Titan, holding the sleeves of the dress against his own shoulders. "Ain't it great? I mean, can you _imagine_ Raven wearing something like this?" Cyborg's lips twitched treacherously at the image Beast Boy put in his head.

Starfire's gift had consisted of a fluffy-looking baby blue dress with a poofy skirt, short, puffy sleeves and lots of white frill and lace. It sort of reminded the Titan of the dress Cinderella wore to her ball in that Disney movie, and the thought of the solemn Titan in such an outfit really was quite laughable.

Still, Cyborg managed to draw up enough self restraint to keep himself from falling into hysterics, stepping precariously into the room to begin with gathering the outfits the changeling had discarded.

"This is serious, man," Cyborg told Beast Boy sternly. "If Raven finds out you were in here _again_, there won't be enough of you left for a funeral." Sighing, the mechanical man began to hang the outfits back on their hooks, sticking them in the closet the best he could. "Now help me get these back up so we don't get into trouble."

"Aw, come on man!" Beast Boy laughed, sitting down on Raven's bed and tossing the Cinderella dress over his shoulder. "Nobody's gonna know we were in here!"

Rolling his eyes, Cyborg turned to respond to this, but stopped dead when he saw the dress fall just short of landing on a bookcase Raven used to store potions, knocking several bottles off the case and onto the floor.

_**BAM!**_

Yelping, Cyborg and Beast Boy both took cover under Raven's bed as a bright orange blast blinded them momentarily. When it faded, the two Titans peeked over the edge of the comforter to stare at the gaping hole on the floor where one could see down to the next floor, with a strange black pattern scorched into the carpet, walls and ceiling.

There was a long lapse of silence before Beast Boy made a high-pitched squeaking noise.

"Dude…" he said, his face paling rapidly. "**_Dude!_** We are _so_ dead for this!" Tearing his eyes from the hole, Cyborg fixed the changeling with an even look.

"What do you mean _'We?'_"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD**

_Chapter 16; Hide and Freak_

* * *

"C-C-C-CUJO?" Danny stammered out, his eyes widening as much as humanly possible.

"Cujo?" Jazz repeated, glancing between her brother and the adorable little ghost dog that was wagging it's tail happily as it burrowed into his backpack. "Where the heck did this one come from?"

_"Bark! Bark!"_ Cujo yipped out happily, coming out of the backpack with a flying leap that hit Danny square in the chest, making him fall backwards to the floor. Jazz covered her mouth to hide her giggles as Cujo began to lap at her brother's face, oblivious to his cries of protest.

"Kids?"

Danny and Jazz both froze at their mother's voice, exchanging panicked looks. Grabbing the puppy up, Danny stood and hid him behind his back with one hand over his muzzle, standing shoulder to shoulder with Jazz just as Maddie entered the tent.

"Mom!" Jazz squeaked out with a nervous smile. "What are you doing here?"

"You promised to be back for your father's presentation, remember?" Maddie reminded the children as she straightened up. "It starts in ten minutes. Did you get what you needed, Danny?"

"Ah, almost…" Danny squeaked out, his heart pounding painfully as Cujo squirmed in his hands. "I just need a little more. You two go ahead without me, okay?"

"That's okay, sweetie. We can wait if you want," Maddie said casually as she started to sit.

**_"NO!"_** Danny and Jazz shouted as one, Jazz leaping forward to grab her mother's arm and pull her back on her feet. Laughing nervously at the baffled look on Maddie's face, Jazz began to push her out the flap.

"Ah, I mean, why wait!" Jazz covered brightly as she pushed Maddie out. "I'd die if I missed Dad's lecture! They're always so interesting!"

"You would?" Maddie blinked in a dazed sort of way. "They are?" Looking concerned, Maddie put a hand against Jazz's forehead. "Sweetie, are you feeling alright?" Wincing, Jazz shot the tent an ugly look when she heard Danny snickering from the inside before turning back to give her mom another overly-enthused smile.

"Of course I am!" she said brightly, "I can't wait to hear dad blather on about ghosts! Come on, what are we waiting for? Let's get back to the lecture hall— _and away from here_— as soon as humanly possible!" And before Maddie could protest, Jazz was hauling her back to the main cabin, leaving Danny and Cujo alone at last.

"Whew…" Danny sighed, sinking down to sit on his sleeping bag and releasing Cujo, who barked loudly as he ran a circle around the ghost boy before stopping in front of him with tail his wagging, eager to play. Danny gave the dog a half-hearted glare, "You know, I'm starting to think you're more trouble then you're worth…"

_"Bark! Bark!"_ Cujo yipped back, licking Danny's hand and rolling over on his stomach to be petted. Groaning, Danny shook his head and rewarded the puppy with what he wanted, earning more tail-wagging for his exertions.

"I'd better take you back to the Ghost Zone before someone else comes looking…" Danny told the dog, lifting him with one hand and standing up.

Turning into a ghost in a flash of light, Danny phased through the tent and flew into the forest with Cujo in his arms, his eyes scanning for the tree Gem had used to open the portal to Ghost Central. That probably wouldn't be too hard…

* * *

"…And this is the _Boo_-merang!" Jack Fenton said cheerfully as he held up the tracking device. "It locks on to a ghost's ectoplasmic signatures and tracks them down wherever they go!"

"Really?" Nene said, clearly hanging onto Jack's every word. "Is it versatile, then?"

"Unfortunately, no." Maddie sighed from where she stood with Jazz. "We're waiting until we get it working to upgrade it." Nene's face fell at that.

"What's wrong with it?" she asked, disappointment heavy in her tone.

"We can't say for sure," Maddie admitted with a thoughtful look, "but for some strange reason, it always targets in on Danny." Nathan snickered slightly, shooting Raven a sheepish grin when she raised an eyebrow at him.

"That kid's a magnet for faulty equipment, huh?" he joked lightly. "I mean, this thing **_and _**the Ghost Alarm last night? Must be something in his blood…" Raven frowned thoughtfully at the boy's reasoning as another girl nearby giggled her agreement.

Now that she thought about it, a lot of the Fenton's ghost hunting gear did seem to malfunction around Danny. The _Boo_-merang, the Ghost Alarm, the Ghost Gabber… They only reacted when Danny was in the room.

_It's probably nothing, _Raven decided at last. After all, she would be able to tell if Danny was being overshadowed, and there was no way someone who felt so normal could be a ghost.

Then again, her experience with paranormal spirits had been a bit lacking of late before her trip to Amity…

_Still,_ the Titan reminded herself sharply. _Danny's parents are leading ghost hunters. I mean, sure I can see a ghost being able to pull the wool over Jack Fenton's eyes, but Jazz and Maddie? They'd know in a heartbeat if something was wrong with Danny, especially with how protective Jazz is._

"How does it work, anyways?" Nene asked. She was pretty much the only person who seemed to be taking the lecture seriously. Personally, Raven didn't see what tracking devices had to do with defensive weaponry, but one thing she'd learned very early on about Jack Fenton was that he tended to get distracted by the first thing that sparkled.

Of course, that was usually because he thought it was a ghost, but that was getting off topic.

"You just throw it and it'll follow the nearest ghost to the ends of the earth!" Jack took a short pause after this boast to add (reluctantly), "Or, at least it's supposed to…"

"Really?" Nene took the _Boo_-merang to examine it more closely. "You just throw it? You mean like this?" And, oblivious to Jazz's cry of protest from the back of the crowd, Nene gave the boomerang a toss, watching as it circled a tree before disappearing into the forest.

"Nice job, Nene," Katie said sarcastically, shooting her sister a smug smirk. "You just lost Mr. Fenton's weapon."

"Relax," Raven sighed, standing up. "I'll get it."

**"NO!**" Startled, everyone turned to look at Jazz at her panicked yell, and the red head flushed brightly under the attention. "Ah, I mean… I'll get it!"

"I thought you wanted to listen to your father's lecture?" Maddie said, raising an eyebrow pointedly at her daughter.

"I do!" Jazz said quickly. "But not if poor Rae has to miss out!"

"It's fine, Jazz," Raven said as she made her way towards the forest.

_I'm about to fall asleep, anyways,_ the sorceress added dryly in her head.

"W-well she shouldn't go alone!" Jazz insisted desperately. "I mean, there are ghosts out there, right? What if something attacks her? Someone should go with her!"

"I'll go!" Valerie volunteered quickly, scurrying to her feet. "I mean, I know all about the weapons Mr. and Mrs. Fenton make!"

_Front and back, blindfolded, and with my hands tied behind my back,_ she continued to herself. She'd taken particular care when she studied the Fenton's weaponry, making sure not to miss a single detail.

"I don't know…" Maddie said hesitantly, biting her lip.

"They'll be fine!" Jack said cheerfully. "Make sure to get back here as soon as possible, kids!"

"We will, Mr. Fenton!" Valerie promised as she and Raven headed into the forest. "Come on, we're wasting time. If we take too long, we'll never be able to find the thing."

"Got it," Raven sighed, glancing around them for any signs of the weapon. What she got instead, though, was a strong thrill at the edge of her sixth sense.

_A ghost?_ Her eyes narrowing, Raven focused on the direction the new source of power was coming from, not even acknowledging the way Valerie's watched beeped loudly, or the way it made the girl stiffen.

"Valerie?" Raven murmured absently. "What do you say we split up? To cover more ground? The Fentons never have to know."

"Good idea!" Valerie agreed quickly. "I'll go this way, we'll meet back here in about ten minutes!" And with that, Valerie walked off to the right in a quick stride. Raven blinked after her in surprise before going far enough in the opposite way to ditch her disguise.

_Well that was easy…_ she thought. Not that she was complaining. It was nice, not having to argue with Valerie about something. She just didn't get why the girl agreed so quickly.

As soon as her disguise was gone, Raven flew off in the direction she'd sensed the ghost, her eyebrow kicking up when she heard a hollow noise of metal hitting bone, followed by a loud yelping, then an exasperated groan.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me…"

Raven faltered, not believing her ears for a moment. After all, the camp out was being held miles and miles from Amity Park, so there was almost no way the controversial ghost boy could be there. _No way._

Before Raven could consider this any further, she heard a charging weapon and a loud blast, dodging just in time to avoid being hit by a tree that was blown in half by a burst of vivid pink ectoblast.

Whipping back around, the sorceress gaped openly at the clearing that was now in her line of view, where Danny Phantom, a little green ghost puppy and the ghost hunter from the fair were standing off.

…Well, technically Phantom was floating holding the dog and the ghost hunter was on a rather wicked looking jet sled, but that sounded far less dramatic.

_Well…_ Raven thought grimly as she raised her hood. _This is going to end badly…_

* * *

Furious didn't even begin to cover how Valerie was feeling as she aimed her gun at the ghost in front of her.

"Not your dog, huh?" She snapped coolly, restraining her anger the best she could. What Danny Phantom was doing at a ghost hunter's convention she didn't know or care. All she was after right now was some payback.

"V-Valerie!" the ghost said in surprise, tensing at the new threat to his afterlife. Neither hunter nor prey paid any mind to the sound of something falling somewhere behind Valerie. As Valerie charged her weapon again, the ghost boy winced andadjusted his grip onthe puppy in his arms, taking off through air as the forest earned itself a brand new crater.

"You're dead, ghost!" Valerie snarled out as she gave chase, weaving through the larger branches and simply blasting the smaller ones out of her way.

"Valerie, please!" Phantom called back, sounding exasperated and panicked at the same time. "You don't under—!"

"Oh, don't even start that with me again!" the hunter snapped, picking up speed and taking advantage of an opening in the ghost's guard to send him falling to the ground with a cry of pain.

He skidded a few feet after he hit the dirt, twigs and rocks digging into his face. The weird ghost dog fell out of his grasp and flew a little further, yelping pitifully as it hit a tree root. Something else rolled away from the ghost too, but Valerie didn't pay it any mind.

Valerie pulled to a stop above the ghost kid, bringing her jet sled down enough so that she was in point blank range and glowering coldly at her fallen enemy. This was the moment of truth for her, the time where she could get the ghost back for everything he'd put her and her father through, and for putting Danny in danger like he had when she was dating him.

"Good-bye, ghost," she said in an acidic tone as she charged the weapon, the energy gathering at the barrel.

"AZARATH METRION ZINTHOS!"

The ghost hunter cried out in surprise when a large tree branch suddenly began to glow with a black energy, wrenching itself free to hit Valerie in the stomach and knock her off of the jet sled, her breath leaving her in the force of the blow.

She screamed when her fall was broken by her back hitting another tree, sliding down the trunk to rest at the base. The bark dug into her spinal cord as she tried to shake off the surprise attack to see who'd snuck up on her.

"Wha—?" Phantom groaned as he got back into the air, still looking a little dazed from Valerie's attack. His eyes widened in confusion as a pale teenager in a blue cloak strode into the clearing at a smooth, confident pace, her eyes trained on Valerie. "Raven?"

"Go," the girl said, not acknowledging the uncertainty in the ghost's voice. The ghost didn't move at first, glancing hesitantly between Valerie and the newcomer, but when Raven fixed him with a pointed glare he finally consented, picking up the fallen ghost dog and flying off out of view.

Much to the fury of one of the two teenaged girls he left behind.

"You…" she growled as she got to her feet, glaring at Raven. "I almost had him!"

"And what were you going to do with him?" Raven asked icily. "Kill him?"

"He's a **_ghost_**!" Valerie snarled back, her fists clenching at her side. "And a dangerous one, too! Do you have any idea what kinda damage that ghost has caused?"

"No," Raven answered bluntly, "but I know what kind of damage he could cause if he wanted to, and I know that you attacked him without a good reason. And since he didn't blast you a single time in self defense while you were holding an ecto-gun to his head, I think I was within my rights to take his side this time." Valerie bristled at that.

"And who are you to come in here and make that kind of judgment, huh?" Valerie asked coldly. Raven gave her an even look before turning and starting away without answering, only fueling Valerie's temper even more. She was tempted for a moment to blast the pale girl in the back of the head, but resisted the urge to actually do so.

No matter what people said about her attitude towards the undead, she'd never attacked a living person with the intent to cause any lasting physical damage before.

_Cocky little know-it-all…_ she thought angrily as she deactivated her suit. She still needed to find the stupid _Boo-_merang and catch up with Rachael before the Fentons got suspicious, after all…

Before she left the clearing, though, the sun hit something metallic and made it sparkle, catching the ghost hunter's eye. Belatedly she realized that it must've been what the ghost had dropped earlier when she'd blasted him, but when she actually saw what it was, all of her thoughts screeched to an abrupt halt.

The Fenton's _Boo_-merang.

* * *

**WoM- _Before anyone asks I'll answer the question for you; Yes, Raven now knows that Valerie is the ghost hunter in red. I had a little too much fun with the intro here, I think, but it was ust too easy to see that happening. _(**_'waggles finger at Beast Boy' _**Bad Beast Boy, BAD!) _At any rate, thanks for all you kind comments and your endless patience and stay tuned for next chapter!_**

* * *

**Thanks to;**

Crazy Billie Joe Loving Freak, Ant Crown, Seeker Carter, alboc, Light Dragon SunsSong, Missmeliss4251, puppyface, littlekittykat, Petitio Principii, Shadowkeeper113, danica phantom, epobbp, shojobutterfly, Samantha-Girl Scout, Ohka Breynekai, Rob Phantom, kingdomhearts222, Darth Frodo, Sparky the Wonder Weasel, Shiva the Sarcastic, BratCat, conan98002, Zuzanny, The Sole Survivor, Invader Johnny, The Unknown Alias, Fade B., Firehedgehog, phantomshadowdragon, Hakkyou Kuusou, WolfDaughter, Lumias, Rae, Flinchrock, Shadow in the Dark, midnightgoth9, enigmatic penguin, AirGirl Phantom, Halfa-NariMaruko, kikyo AND terra AND palina AND aoyama are bitches and should rot in hell, Jazzy, The Sith, shadowcat86, kdm13, Luna Mae, Krystal, JPElles, Nobody is Somebody, kawaii chibi shun, SamuraiSirius, GoGoJirachi, Baka Hanyou Rahvin, schmidie-lee83, Haikari Archersight, vlad snuffles, The Lost Hibiki, Zarz, Burnning Truth, Katie, Curtis-Ownby, magicgirl45852, Kirstyn.T, benign intent, kingman, xXKairiXx, cayhleenlovestowrite, unknown, KHFREAK14, Shadow49, Cold-heart-Angel23,Itallia, iamratgirl, hammy ham ham, katiesparks, Aniu Blade


	17. IMPORTANT!

I'm sure most of you have already heard the sad news, but if not I'm here to tell you now; Recently my friend RoyaleRockerella, known better as Lateraina Wolf over on got into a serious car accident with her bandmembers.

Two of her friends died on impact, one died in the hospital the next day and another is in a coma. Lateraina herself is fine physically, but emotionally she's going to need some serious time to recover.

I'm not going to pretend I know what she's going through, as I have been fortunate enough to have never lost someone close to me due to death before, let alone three of my friends at once, but I do understand why she'd ask people to understand her lack of updates, and hope that you guys would be considerate enough to think about her feelings right now before you give her a hard time about her stories.

Speaking to Lateraina over the phone, I know how much her band meant to her, and I realize what a hard time she has to be going through right now. I'm not a religious person myself, but if you are, please remember Lateraina in your prayers and even if your not try to be as compassionate as possible, merely due to the fact that she's a friend who needs our help.

I'm going to be starting a get well giftart immediately to give Lateraina, to let her know that I'm here for her, and I ask everyone out there, whether you've read her stories or not, to join me. Lateraina needs out support, people, this is what being a friend is about.

I'll be posting somehting on all my stories as well, because she asked her sister to tell me to get the new out about why she wasn't updating. Everything considered, I feel this is the least I can do for her right now.


	18. Amity

**WoM- _It took me a while to word this chapter the way I wanted to, so be grateful I'm so devoted to you guys! Well, the fact that I was bored outta my mind might have helped, too…_**

* * *

_"Are you sure she's as good as you think she is?" Kayla asked doubtfully, frowning skeptically at the pictures before her._

"If she isn't already, then she will be with the proper training." Trent responded firmly. Kayla scoffed slightly, smirking at the younger boy.

_"Wow, Trent…" She giggled. "You've got it bad…" Annoyed, Trent scowled back at the girl._

_"The only thing I've got." He growled out. "Is a headache from putting up with you. Shouldn't you be looking into that boy's password?"_

_"Hey, we've tried everything." Kayla responded, shrugging. "Whatever it is, we can't crack it. All we've figured out is that it's 14 characters long. Other then that, the kid's got more protection then Fort Knox."_

_"No matter." Trent sighed. "Whatever the boy had logged away on that computer was of no vital importance when compared to the boy himself, anyways. How is the rest of the mission going? Did the girl see you?"_

_"Are you kidding?" Kayla rolled her eyes. "I couldn't have been more obvious if I had a blimp flying around!"_

_"I take it that means yes…" Trent said dryly. Just then, movement outside of his office caught his attention, and he turned sharply to find Megumi at the door._

_"Are you aware that the rookie hunters are making a game out of hunting captured spirits down like wild animals in the training room before obliterating them?" She asked him, clearly annoyed. Trent frowned at this news, while Kayla perked up slightly._

_"Really?" She said. "That sounds like fun…"_

_"Kayla." Trent sighed, shooting the girl a look. "Tell them to stop, Megumi. We need those ghosts for experiments."_

_"As you wish." Megumi said, slipping out of the room. Kayla made a face at her departure._

_"You know she's plotting something, right?" Kayla asked Trent casually. "She has to be, with the way she's been talking to that half ghost every day, and pouring over books."_

_"Of course, Kayla." Trent sighed. "But we still need her for now, so it's best to just turn a blind eye." As he finished speaking, Trent stood and headed for the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other business to attend to…"_

"Oh, come on, Sam! What's the big secret, anyways?"

_If you only knew…_ Sam thought dryly as she rolled her eyes before turning back to her roommate's pouting face.

"If that was any of your business, I'd tell you." She replied before busying herself with her homework.

"Please." Marie scoffed, looking up from her fashion magazine to shoot Anna an annoyed look. "let it go already, Anna, she's obviously lying." Sam snorted slightly.

"Whatever, Marie." She said sarcastically.

Ever since it got out that Sam knew Danny Phantom, she'd become surprisingly popular around the school, much to her horror. Apparently Danny was just as famous overseas as he was in the US. In fact, there was even a Danny Phantom Fan Club in her school, filled with girls who carried pictures of her best friend in their daily planners and stuck posters of him on their walls.

It was all Sam could do not to die laughing at the sight of them.

Still, the only thing funnier then the fan club was the fact that Marie was a founding member, and the vice president. So when Anna let it slip that Sam had actually met Danny Phantom, Marie was expected to get the full story from her. When that proved hopeless, Sam found herself more or less stalked by the girls as they asked her the most ridiculous questions in the world…

"You honestly think anyone will believe someone as famous as Danny Phantom would even associate with a girl like you?" Marie continued, apparently not ready to let the subject drop that easily. Sam scowled at that one

"Well maybe he's not as vain and conceited as you think he is." Sam said through gritted teeth, fuming at what she saw as an attack on her best friend's character.

"Then what is he like?" Anna asked curiously. Sam sighed.

"He's… sweet." She finally answered, getting a far off look in her eyes. "Easy-going, too. He's the kind of person anyone can be comfortable around. He doesn't seem all that powerful, but he's strong enough to handle anything. And I'm not talking about his powers, either. Danny's just the kind of guy who will protect anyone, no matter how much they hurt him, just because he knows it's the right thing to do. He's brave and compassionate and someone that you know you can always count on, no matter how ugly things seem to get."

"Wow, Sam." Anna said, awe clear in her voice. "You really seem to know him!" Realizing that she'd gone too far at the looks on her roommates faces, Sam blushed and turned back to her homework.

"Not really." Sam said vaguely. "I just, you know, saw him flying around and all…"

"Whatever." Marie scoffed. "You almost sound like you're in love with him, Sam." Sam faltered for a moment before she continued, her face carefully unreadable.

"Me? In love with Danny Phantom?" She repeated. "Don't be ridiculous Marie, why would someone like me fall in love with Danny Phantom…?"

* * *

**BLACKBIRD **

_Chapter 17; Amity_

* * *

"Home sweet home…" Jazz sighed happily as FentonWorks came into view, earning a smirk from Danny.

"Wow, Jazz." He said, laughing slightly. "That's gotta be the first time you didn't wince at the sight of our house."

"What can I say, after three days of camping with obsessive ghost hunters, the only place I want to be is my own room." Chuckling slightly, Danny shook his head as the Fentons climbed out of the GAV. Walking up to his room, though, Dannys smile fell away.

After he'd gotten away from Valerie by the skin of his teeth and returned Cujo to the Ghost Zone, something had changed between him and his friends. Valerie had been really quiet for the rest of the trip, and almost wary of him for some reason, especially when some of the ghost detection devices went off when he got too close. He didn't want to believe that she was on to him, but he couldn't see any other reason for her to be so cold to him.

She wasn't the only one who changed attitudes, either. Any progress made in creating peace between Valerie and Rae seemed to take a complete nosedive. Rae was now being harsh and cold towards Valerie, not trusting her with nearly anything. This had led to quite a few fights between the girls, and it got to the point where someone else had to stay near them at all times in case one of them snapped (usually Valerie).

Other then that, though, the rest of the trip passed by without incident. Danny and Jazz couldn't find any more information on the Haunters and the ghosts in Ghost Central took off the second their names were brought up.

All and all, Danny wasn't feeling too good about this new enemy.

Still, he had to agree with Jazz as he fell back onto his own bed to relax after the long trip home. It was good to be back in his room again. Those sleeping bags were murder to sleep in, and forest sounds had kept him up half the night. Yes, it was definitely a plus to be back to the peace and quiet of Amity Park…

"CODE RED!"

Falling out of bed in surprise, Danny got to his feet and opened his door to see what was going on, at the same time a confused looking Jazz stuck her head out of her bedroom door. Sure enough, Jack Fenton barreled up the stairs and grabbed Danny by the shoulders, dragging him into the hall before the teen even had time to yelp.

"Danny, someone has stolen some of our blueprints!" He announced, panicking. "Have you seen anyone on the property?"

"What?" Danny blinked at his dad in confusion. "No! I haven't seen anyone…"

"Hmm, he's being sneaky then, is he?" Jack said shrewdly. "Well, whoever this jerk is, he can't escape the sleuthing skills of Jack Fenton! I'll sniff him out no matter where he's gone!" And, before either of his kids could say another word, Jack took off, promptly tripping down the flight of stairs.

After rolling her eyes at her father's grace (as in lack thereof) Jazz crossed her arms and shot her brother a pointed, accusing look that he didn't catch for a minute. When he did, though, he went immediately on the defensive.

"Don't look at me!" He said, putting his hands up in front of him. "I didn't do it this time, honest!" Jazz sighed at that.

"And who else would want dad's ghost hunting stuff?" She asked dryly.

"I'm serious, Jazz, it wasn't me!" Danny scowled, irritated at the accusation.

"Whatever." Jazz rolled her eyes. "By the way, here's another letter from Sam for ya." Brightening, Danny snatched the letter out of his sister's hand, already ripping it open as he reentered his room and making Jazz scowl in annoyance. "You're welcome!"

Ignoring Jazz, Danny shook the letter open, grinning at the though of his goth friend in France. Maybe when he wrote back to her, she's be able to help him with this new mess he was in…

_Dear Danny,_

_Hey there! Miss me, do ya? Well, you're definitely not alone there._

_I've been going _**INSANE**_ over here! Can you believe that they won't let_

_me dye my hair? They say it's against school rules or something. AND_

_they have standardized haircuts we're all expected to have now. As if all_

_the girls around here weren't cookie-cutter Barbie-doll wannabes already…_

_Haven't found anyone with a shred of originality yet, unfortunately._

_Marie is still driving me crazy. Do you think maybe an attempted_

_homicide will get me out of this place of evil? Prison can't be half as bad as_

_Saint Marguerite's Finishing School for Privileged Young Women. Still,_

_I'm not sure how I could manage it… they've been keeping anything that's_

_sharp, blunt, or otherwise dangerous as far away from as possible. I'm_

_starting to think mom told them I was a suicide risk or something…_

_I definitely wouldn't put it past her to say something like that._

_My other roommate, Anna, is tolerable. She's one of those sweet,_

_goody-goody two-shoe girls, though. It's not her fault really, she's been_

_deprived. Can you believe she's never even heard of Dumpty Humpty? I've_

_got to smuggle a CD in here for her before it's too late…_

_Anna and I had a funny conversation the other day about you, by_

_the way. Well, not you, but the other you. Apparently, you're infamous all_

_throughout the East here. Especially in England, France and all throughout_

_Asia. In fact, you picture is technically outlawed in China, and girls still_

_smuggle them in to hide in their rooms._

_My school even has a fan club for you. Can you believe it? I met_

_the president the other day, too. Her name is Joan, and she actually walks_

_around with all these buttons and pictures of you, gloating about how she's_

Le Fantome_'s biggest fan, and how some day she'll fly to America and_

_marry you. It's torture trying not to laugh at her…_

_Speaking of the Phantom thing, though, Tucker's been telling me_

_that you and Valerie have been getting a lot closer lately. I know your_

_hormones are making it harder to appeal to whatever sanity you have left,_

_but you really shouldn't be around her so much. You like her, I get that,_

_but you have to remember, Danny, Valerie's a ghost hunter first and_

_foremost, no matter what you feel for her. Getting so close isn't going to_

_help either of you, especially if she finds out._

_Anyways, I'm off to break into the headmistress' office and break_

_those annoying china figurines she collects. Maybe that'll be enough to get_

_me expelled or something… Try and write back soon, and don't forget_

_about me over there, okay? Be back soon! (I hope…)_

_Lotta Love,_

_Sam_

_PS; One more comment on that French jerk who hit on me on the plane,_

_and I'll stow away back to the US to kill you._

Chuckling slightly, Danny folded the letter back up and stuck it back into the envelope before he put it with all of his other letters from Sam. It was nice to see that Sam was still surviving in France, though he could do without the cracks about his ghost half… not to mention the Valerie lecture. It figured Tucker would rat him out…

Danny has just finished addressing his return letter (To a Ghost Hunter in France, who was happy to play mailman in exchange for information and samples from the Ghost Zone, which he thought came from Jack and Maddie.) when there was a knock on his door, followed by a very timid request.

"Danny? Can I come in?"

The half ghost blinked at his door in surprise for a second, unused to such a drastic chance of character all of a sudden. Jazz never asked permission to enter his room, but always just barged in whenever she felt like it. Frowning suspiciously, Danny leaned back in his chair, eyeing the door carefully.

"Sure." He said cautiously, watching his sister enter with a nervous smile and close the door behind her.

"Hey Danny." She said sweetly. "I just wanted to apologize for earlier. You know, when I thought you took Dad's blueprints. I was wrong, and I just figured I should say sorry." Danny gaped openly at that, still trying to comprehend the last sentence before his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Who are you and what have you done to Jazz?" He asked, crossing his arms and glaring pointedly at the redhead. Jazz's smile melted at that.

"I'm being serious, Danny, quit being a brat!" Jazz scowled back. Danny relaxed, sure now that his sister wasn't being overshadowed or something.

"Okay then." Danny sighed. "Who died?"

"No one it's just…" Jazz shifted uncomfortably. "Someone's been into my diary." A long lapse of silence followed this bit of news.

"So?" Jazz cringed a little obviously hoping she wouldn't have to clarify any further.

"So," She said giving her brother a nervous smile. "I… well, I kinda had some stuff written in there about you being half ghost."

* * *

_"No kidding?"_

Raven sighed before nodding her confirmation, leaning against a door and crossing her arms underneath her cloak. She'd almost stared to miss the familiar piece of clothing…

"I couldn't believe it, either." Raven admitted. A little bitter, she added. "And here she was accusing _me_ of stealing from the Fentons…"

_"Well, are you sure she's a threat?"_ Robin pressed, frowning thoughtfully at the information Raven had just given him.

"As of right now, no." Raven said, her lips pressed firmly together. "But I'll definitely be keeping an eye on her…"

_"Right, and the ghost?"_

"He seems fairly benevolent, but I'm not ready to trust him completely just yet." Raven frowned thoughtfully. "Still, I'm pretty sure that he isn't some villainous mastermind out to wreak havoc on mankind or anything of that sort… He's too awkward and good-natured for that."

_"Give it another week or so, then turn everything in and come home."_ Robin ordered. _"You're needed here in Jump City, and it shouldn't take any longer then that to sort things out over there."_

"Roger." Raven said, a strange pang going through her. While she wasn't what you'd call 'affectionate' of life in high school, she liked being able to pretend that she was almost normal for however brief a time… besides, hanging out with Danny was kinda fun.

**_"A week?"_** Beastboy shrieked, going strangely pale. Surprised, everyone turned their attention to the green changeling, who blushed vividly. _"Heh, I mean… why so soon? I'm sure Raven's having a blast in high school!"_

"No, not really…" Raven said dryly. "Other then Danny, there's no one in Casper I can tolerate for long periods of time."

_"Danny?"_ Cyborg repeated, blanking out on the name. _"The ghost kid is a student?"_

"No, Danny Fenton, the boy from the ghost hunting family." Raven clarified, frowning slightly. She'd never noticed the similarities between Danny's name and Phantom's…

"You're still injured, and with Raven gone that only leaves three of us." Robin reminded Beastboy before turning back to Raven. "Make sure you tell your principal not to keep you there any longer then a week."

"Sure thing." Raven said. "I'm going to go out once more before turning in. I'll talk to you guys as soon as I can."

"Roger." Robin nodded. "Good luck, Raven." And with that, the boy wonder cut off communications.

Pulling her hood up, Raven phased through her wall and took off flying, savoring the cool feeling of the wind against her as she flew. The night was surprisingly quiet, without a ghost in sight. It was strange, too, since Mrs. Ishiyama had told her that no known ghost attacks had taken place in the Fenton's absence, expect for one or two that were suspected insurance frauds. Still, even though many of the citizens took it as a good sign, Raven couldn't help but have a bad feeling about the situation…

Which wasn't improved when Raven finally did run into a ghost.

"This is stupid! I don't even know what this psychopath looks like!" Phantom growled out impatiently, glaring off into space.

He never even noticed Raven coming to a stop behind him. She raised an eyebrow as he continued his one-sided conversation, much to the sorceress' amusement.

"And what the heck am I supposed to tell them, huh? They'll probably think I did it or something!" Another pause, this one a little longer. "Hey, I'm not the one who left everything out where anyone could find it, if my face ends up on the front page tomorrow morning, it's on your head!"

That one raised an eyebrow, since Raven would imagine that Phantom was used to news coverage by now. Before Raven could contemplate this further, the ghost boy heaved out a sigh.

"I know, I know… Look, I don't think we're gonna find the guy tonight. The best thing to do is get a fresh start tomorrow and hope the guy is still around. If we're lucky, he isn't trying to sell the information to the highest bidder was we speak. If not… well, we'll deal with that when the time comes." Raven faltered slightly at that, surprised at the severity of Phantom's tone.

Whatever had happened was obviously serious, and Raven had a funny feeling it was connected with the rest of the craziness that was taking place. Curious, Raven tried to listen closer to the murmur of voice responding to the ghost, hoping to place it with someone she'd met.

"Look, don't worry, okay? It wasn't your fault. None of us thought anyone would break in and go through your diary. Just try and find something so we'll know where to look. With any luck, he left something behind that'll point us in the right direction…"

Raven bit back an angry sigh at the way the ghost kept eluding around whatever it was he was talking about, unknowingly testing the half demon's patience to their limit. She took a deep breath an exhaled slowly, berating herself for thinking that it would be so easy.

"Sure thing. See you in a bit, Jazz."

Still irritated, Raven didn't catch the slip at first. When it finally clicked though, she couldn't help but gasp audibly, making Phantom wheel around with his fists glowing before he realized who was behind him and nearly fell out of the air in surprise.

"Raven?" He said, alarmed. "How did you What did you hear?" The ghost seemed frantic for a moment, and Raven came out of her surprise long enough to frown at him suspiciously.

"Enough to know that you're in contact with Jazz Fenton." She answered evenly, watching him flinch in response before sighing.

"Look, whatever you're thinking right now, I'm not doing anything wrong." Phantom said with a pointed look. "Jazz helps me because she trusts me. Her parents don't know and everything considered…" Raven chuckled slightly at Phantom flinched, easily filling in the blanks.

"I'll buy that." Raven said, smirking slightly when the ghost visibly relaxed. "As long as you tell me what was taken that's so important to you."

"Really? That's it?" Phantom asked, sounding a little surprised. "No problem. Someone broke into FentonWorks when we were at the camp out. Apparently, they snuck a peek at Jazz's diaries, which wouldn't be a problem is she hadn't written a lot of… sensitive information about me in there." Raven's eyebrow kicked up at that.

"How sensitive are we talking here?" She asked.

"My strengths and weaknesses as a fighter, a full list of all my powers and a lot of personal stuff about what makes me tick, to start with." Phantom sighed. Raven flinched slightly. "Yeah. You could imagine what kind of trouble I'd be in if that got into the wrong hands."

"Well, I'll be happy to help however I can." Raven said, earning a droll smile from the ghost.

"Thanks, but I really think this is something I need to find on my own. I mean, no offence of anything, but the thought of anyone knowing this kind of junk makes me nervous."

"Understandable." Raven said with a bitter smile, remembering how it felt when Terra had infiltrated their group and used their weaknesses against them. "Just let me know if I can help, okay?"

"Sure." Phantom said with a smile. "And by the way, thanks for helping me with the whole ghost hunter thing." Raven frowned a little there, tempted to ask the ghost more about Valerie, but before she got the chance Phantom disappeared on her.

Sighing slightly, Raven headed back to her apartment to get ready for school the next day, which already promised to be long and tedious…

* * *

_Maybe it was some kind of mistake…_

As much as Valerie wanted to cling to that hope, she already knew that it wasn't so. Frowning at the _Boo-_merang darkly as she sat lost in her thoughts, Valerie couldn't help but bring her resentment of Danny Phantom up another notch.

_Even I never thought he'd sink this low…_ She said bitterly in her mind. _Though I still can't believe how careless he got… Overshadowing a boy in constant contact with ghost hunters… _

Still, for all of the bad things she had to say about Phantom, she had to admit he was smart. Smart enough to fool Jack and Maddie into believing he was their son, at least.

_Not me, though._ Valerie thought stubbornly, scowling slightly. _Okay, maybe at first, but not anymore! And he's never gonna fool me again, either…_

Valerie sighed softly, wondering what she was supposed to do now. She'd been trying to contact Mr. Masters since she got home, but his secretary kept telling her he was elsewhere, and that he couldn't be contacted.

He really chose the perfect time for a vacation…

Valerie shook her head, dismissing these thoughts. It didn't matter, after all, she could handle this on her own. She'd save Danny from that wretched ghost kid.

And when she did, she'd make Danny Phantom wish he'd never entered the after life…

* * *

WoM- That should be good enough for now:D More from me later, kay?

* * *

**Thanks to;**

BJA Fan, Hakkyou Kuusou, phantomshadowdragon, Kradeiz, Leppers, The Unknown Alias, Balkoth, epobbp, Zipidee, Shadowkeeper113, kingdomhearts222, Tetsukon, Ghostboy814, StrugglingArtist, MissMeliss4251, Kute Anime Kitty, Charys of the shadows, Invader Johnny, Itallia, The Sole Survivor, hammy ham ham, Shiva the Sarcastic, Gmasangel, Shades-of-Pink, Shadow49, Linariel, thelazywonderweasel, shojobutterfly, Firehedgehog, conan98002, Jenna Dax, Boongdaba, Rob Phantom, SamuraiSirius, Aki, DSK, blackkaosrose, aur0ra, Kirstyn.T, midnight, JPElles, AirGirl Phantom, SquirrelGirl13, Sasia, Zuzanny, BratCat, Awsome, Samantha-Girl Scout, Kagome the inu-kitsune/miko, Master Whiz, Darth Frodo, IntroSquirrel, Touch of the Wind, Nobody is Somebody, a.p.nikki1717, Wolfinson, Serena, moonlightning3, Frodo01228, ForgottenSmile, coolgirlc, deadzonedragon, BarnOwl93, LanHikari2000x, silver-geisha, ArrowOfHikaru, -StarPhantom-, Shewhodanceswithdragons, BadCatGirl, Becky Yuy, Sirithiliel, DP fan, Light Dragon SunsSong, Witch4ever, Rambie, Jimmy the Gothic Egg, Horselvr4evr123, ShiroAndFubuki, AirGirl Phantom, MissMeliss4251, Ghostboy814, Rob the Hedgehog, katiesparks, Shiva the Sarcastic, Dragonrider04, leilanisangel2, SoulcatSpirit, Girl of the Graveyard, Darkling Loki, dtechno, DrIvoRobotnik, fan-girls2.0, samanddan, Zirra Nova, Twisted Creampuff, YamiTora, Kyasarin-Maarukeehii1, vanilla72590, Sevvy101, Cyllwen


End file.
